Roadway mark data acquisition and analysis apparatus, systems, and methods

ABSTRACT

An apparatus, system, and method for determining characteristics of a roadway mark at a remote location. The system includes a vehicle having at least one imager for producing image data containing at least one actual roadway mark evident on a roadway surface. A GPS antenna is mounted on the vehicle. A GPS receiver is responsive to the GPS antenna for determining a GPS location of the GPS antenna. An apparatus responsive to the imager and the GPS receiver determines a GPS location of the roadway mark and filters and compresses the image data, the filtered and compressed image data containing the image data of the roadway mark. An apparatus communicates the filtered and compressed image data to the remote location for analyzing the roadway mark characteristics from the image data.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 13/728,062, filed on Dec. 27, 2012, which, in turn, is acontinuation-in-part of U.S. application Ser. No. 13/351,829, filed onJan. 17, 2012, and issued as U.S. Pat. No. 8,467,968. Both priorapplications are incorporated by reference into this document, in theirentirety and for all purposes.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to GPS-based machine visionlocating and inspection systems and to devices for making a visualindicia in or on top of pavement. More particularly, the presentinvention relates to vehicle mounted locating and inspection systems fordetermining the geographical location and condition of roadway marks,GPS-based systems used for painting or otherwise “marking” roadwaytraffic lane demarcation lines, and apparatus, systems, and methods foracquiring and remotely analyzing roadway mark location and inspectiondata.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

New or repaved roadway surfaces almost always require the application ofroadway surface markings as a mechanism for visually providing motoristswith lane demarcation lines for controlling and directing traffic. Inthe past, the process of applying new roadway surface markings consistedof first manually determining, for example in the case of center lines,the center of the roadway surface and painting small dots to visuallydefine the roadway center. A driver of a paint vehicle would then usethe roadway center to guide a paint sprayer which would deposit paintalong the path defined by the small dots.

Currently, this task is accomplished by determining the center of theroadway at a first location point by manually measuring the width of theroadway and placing a mark at the center point. This process is thenrepeated to determine the center point of the roadway at a second pointwhich is displaced from the first point. These two points now define thestarting and ending points for a line segment which identifies thecenter path of the roadway. A chain or string line is then stretchedbetween the first and second center points and small white (or othercolored) painted dots are manually sprayed and spaced along thestretched chain giving a visual indication of the center line of theroadway. The chain or string line is then removed from the roadwaysurface. This entire process is then repeated for the next segment ofthe roadway using the ending position of the first segment as thestarting position for the second segment. This process is continuouslyrepeated until the location of the center of the entire roadway has beendefined. The roadway center line is used as a reference to define theroadway mark path (i.e., the roadway center line defines the mark path).

Having defined the position of the center of the roadway, a truckequipped with line painting equipment is positioned over the white dots.The driver of the truck then uses the white dots as a visual guide alongwith a pointer for coarsely positioning the truck over the definedsegments. A second operator sits at the rear of the truck and positionsa side moveable paint carriage directly over the dots for all definedsegments of the roadway center. The side moveable carriage allows thesecond operator to apply the roadway marking at the desired location andto correct for any slight misalignment of the truck position withrespect to the guide dots. A controlled paint spray nozzle arraypositioned on the side moveable carriage then applies the paint onto theroadway surface as the truck follows each center segment of the roadway.As the truck follows the mark path (the center of the roadway), thenozzle array applies the desired roadway mark (a single or multiple,solid or dashed, roadway marking) which may be offset from the markpath.

Although the current technology achieves the desired goal of providing asystem for applying roadway markings, the current system is manuallyintensive and places the personal safety of workers at significant risk.For example, two workers are required to measure the starting and endingposition of the segments, and two workers are required to actually paintthe roadway markings (one worker is required to drive the truck and theother worker is required to operate both the carriage and paintdispensing equipment). In addition, to minimize the impact of applyingthe roadway surface markings to actively traveled roads and highways,the application of roadway markings is often done in the late eveninghours. During this time, traffic visibility is impeded and there is asignificant potential for oncoming traffic to collide with those workersmanually defining the starting and ending positions for each segment.

Previous attempts to automate the process of marking roadways includedguiding the road marking equipment along a predetermined mark path usingelectromagnetic beams. Unfortunately, these methods required theplacement of transmitters along the roadway. Other previous attemptshave included the use of light beams arranged in a manner to define theproper path. Again, this attempt proved difficult to implement becauseof sunlight interference. Other attempts have included using radioactivemarking material which would emit a characteristic fingerprint to definethe roadway mark path. There are many disadvantages with usingradioactive marking material, including health and safety issues,longevity (half-life) of the radioactive material, and disposalproblems.

Other attempts to re-mark roadway surfaces have included using a drawingapplication program in combination with a global positioning system(GPS)-based paint sprayer. A drawing pattern is created using theapplication program and geographical coordinates for the pattern whichare manually defined and then used by the GPS paint sprayer to mark theroadway surface. This attempt requires that the drawing pattern for theroadway be predetermined and fails if the exact location of the roadwaymarking is inaccurately defined, or if the drawing pattern does notcorrespond exactly with the geographical position of the actual roadway.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,074,693 and No. 6,299,934 (related as a divisional) eachdisclose one example of a paint sprayer for marking roadways and fieldswith a drawing pattern. Both issued to Manning and titled “GlobalPositioning System Controlled Paint Sprayer,” the patents teach a systemhaving an external computer and a GPS paint sprayer. The drawing patternis created by a designer using either a geographical information system(GIS) which runs, or drawing application programs which run, on theexternal computer. A print file of the drawing pattern is created by theoperating system software and is passed to the GPS paint sprayer. Theprint file may contain the geographical mapping of pixel data; instead,the geographical mapping of the pixel data may be completed within theGPS paint sprayer. In either case, the geographical mapping of thedrawing image is determined and then stored in memory within the GPSpaint sprayer. The GPS paint sprayer further includes a GPS receiver anda location comparator. The GPS receiver determines the geographicallocation of the GPS paint sprayer and the location comparator determinesif a match occurs between the current GPS location of the paint sprayerand the geographical mapping of the drawing image. If a location matchbetween the current GPS location of the GPS paint sprayer andgeographical mapping data of the drawing image is detected, a controlsignal is sent to a spray nozzle which deposits paint or other materialat the match location. Both lines and picture-like drawings can bemarked onto a surface using this patented system.

The '934 patent issued to Manning refers to fifteen earlier patents.Each patent is briefly summarized as follows. First, U.S. Pat. No.4,219,092, titled “Automatic Guidance Apparatus” and issued to Richter,discloses an apparatus for automatically guiding a moving object such asa vehicle along a predetermined path. The predetermined path is definedby a stripe of material capable of emitting a secondary X-ray waveexcited by a first X-ray emitted from the vehicle. Two detectors, acomparison mechanism, and a servo mechanism mounted within the vehiclecorrect the vehicle's path and maintain the vehicle on the desired path.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,460,127, titled “Device for Applying Uniform TrafficLines” and issued to Hofmann, discloses a device operable from a movingvehicle for uniformly applying traffic marks by preventing theoccurrence of substantial pressure fluctuations during the opening andclosing of the paint nozzle. U.S. Pat. No. 4,832,331, titled “AthleticField Marker” and issued to Brandli, discloses a resilient marker stripwhich is imbedded into a sports playing field. The top portion of thestrip is exposed and visible for marking boundary lines. U.S. Pat. No.5,220,876, titled “Variable Rate Application System” and issued toMonson et al., teaches a fertilizer blending and dispensing apparatusand method for fertilizing agricultural fields based upon field locationand soil type, desired soil fertilizer content, current soil fertilizerstatus, and vehicle speed. A GPS or other vehicle location mechanism isincorporated into the apparatus.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,296,256, titled “Method and Apparatus for PaintingHighway Markings” and issued to Hartman, discloses a method andapparatus for painting traffic marking lines over old paint markings onroad pavement. Normally installed on a marking vehicle having a paintgun and a paint supply, the apparatus includes a detector whichilluminates the pavement and utilizes a spectroscope to analyze thereturn inspection for the presence of one or more known preselectedconstituents of the old paint marking to control actuation of the valveon the paint gun and also track the old pavement marking. The apparatusalso provides a paint gun delay function to account for the leaddistance between the detector and paint gun and enables the applicationof new paint markings directly over the old markings at a relativelyhigh rate of vehicle speed.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,529,433, titled “Apparatus and Method for Marking aSurface” and issued to Huynh et al., teaches an apparatus and method fordispensing material to mark a predetermined pattern onto a surface. Thedispenser is manipulated in the x, y, and z directions. In addition, thedispenser can rotate and form a tilt angle with a w-axis.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,540,516, titled “Method for Marking Grass Fields andApparatus for Applying Such Method” and issued to Nicodemo et al.,teaches an apparatus and method for marking sports fields by bendinggrass blades in different directions. The location of the apparatus canbe determined by using GPS or transceivers.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,549,412, titled “Position Referencing, Measuring andPaving Method and Apparatus for a Profiler and Paver” and issued toMalone, discloses a road working apparatus for determining the levelnessof a road surface (surface profile) as a function of position and aleveler for forming a substantially level mat of material on a basesurface of a road.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,653,389, titled “Independent Flow Rate and Droplet SizeControl System and Method for Sprayer” and issued to Henderson et al.,teaches a flow rate and droplet size control system for spraying aliquid (agricultural fertilizer) onto a surface. A position-responsivecontrol system receives information pertaining to the boundaries ofspray zones and spray conditions. The position of the sprayer may bedetermined by a GPS system.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,746,539, titled “Rapid Road Repair Vehicle” and issuedto Mara, discloses a rapid road repair vehicle for quickly repairing aroad surface and recording the position and time of the repair. A GPSsystem is used to determine the location of the repair.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,771,169, titled “Site-Specific Harvest StatisticsAnalyzer” and issued to Wendt, discloses both an apparatus and methodfor allowing a farmer to analyze site-specific data for optimizing cropyield as a function of any number of inputs. Geo-referenced maps alongwith data representative of a spatially variable characteristic are usedto analyze statistical data for at least one given region of a farmingfield. A GPS-based location system may be used to define regions ofinterest for the analysis.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,836,398, titled “Vehicle Mounted Fire Fighting System”and issued to White, discloses a vehicle for fighting fires which mayhave a GPS/GIS system to determine the location of the vehicle relativeto the proximity of a fire and other surroundings.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,838,277, titled “GPS-Based Controller Module” and issuedto Van Wyck Loomis, discloses a zone-based GPS controller module. Theapparatus includes a GPS receiver, a zoned map, and controller logic.The GPS location is used to determine a particular zone location. Inresponse to a particular zone location, the controller produces analogor logic signal outputs.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,857,066, titled “Method and System for Producing anImproved Hiking Trail Map” and issued to Wyche et al., discloses amethod for producing a hiking trail map using a GPS receiver fordetermining the positions at the beginning and end of each approximatelylinear trail segment.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,115,481, titled “User Modifiable Land Management Zonesfor the Variable Application of Substances Thereto” and issued to Wiens,discloses an apparatus and method for applying one or more formulationsof substances (such as fertilizers, pesticides, and the like) tofarmland, forest, and other areas based upon the specific geographicallocation (i.e., a particular zone within the land area). A GPS systemmay be used for graphically tracking a representation of a vehicletraversing the land area for determining the particular zone andformulations for that zone.

The following seven patents reference the Manning patents. Each isbriefly identified as follows. First, U.S. Pat. No. 6,723,375, titled“Portable Locator Including a Ground Marking Arrangement” and issued toZeck et al., discloses a method for locating an underground cable andmarking the surface above the buried cable.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,729,706, titled “Large Area Marking Device and Methodfor Printing” and issued to Patton et al., discloses an apparatus andmethod for printing an image over a large surface area such asdriveways, fields, and decks or patios. U.S. Pat. No. 6,951,375, titled“Large Area Marking Device and Method for Printing” and issued to Pattonet al., discloses a method and apparatus for printing an enhanced imageon a large surface area using a scanned approximation (crude image) ofthe desired image. These two patents specifically refer to the '693patent and characterize GPS systems as lacking the accuracy for printingan image.

U.S. Pat. No. 7,029,199, titled “Automatic Ground Marking Method andApparatus” and issued to Mayfield et al., discloses an apparatus formarking an even or uneven surface with complex patterns or logos. AGPS-based guidance system may be used for determining the location ofthe marker apparatus.

U.S. Pat. No. 7,640,105, titled “Marking System and Method with Locationand/or Time Tracking” and issued to Nielsen et al., discloses anapparatus and method for marking ground or pavement to provide a visualindication of a buried utility. A GPS-based system is used to record thegeographical location of marks placed on the surface. The time that themark was made may also be recorded.

U.S. Pat. No. 7,866,917, titled “Trailing System for Dispensing Paint”and issued to Malit, teaches a device and method for marking roadways.The device has a mechanism for uniquely identifying the road which mayinclude selectively visible paint. The paint (or other marks) are usedto compliment a computer-assisted transportation system and otherapplications.

U.S. Pat. No. 7,981,462, titled “Method for Applying Paints andVarnishes” and issued to Bustgens, teaches a method for applying paintto buildings and other objects while avoiding protrusions, balconies,and the like which may be incorporated into the desired surface,according to an image template.

The current roadway marking technology has several problems. One problemis that a significant amount of manual labor is required to accuratelypaint lines on roadways, and as a result workers are placed in an unsafeworking environment during the roadway marking process. Another problemwith current technology is the inability to easily and quickly obtainsampled geographical coordinates of the existing roadway line marksusing GPS or GPS-based pseudolite arrays. A related problem is theinability to use this sampled data to generate a continuous function ofthe geographical coordinates for the entire mark path. Additionalproblems are the lack of an offsetting capability to determine othersubstantially parallel mark paths for line marking and, therefore, theinability to uniformly deposit paint or other material along the first(or second) mark path duplicating the previous mark.

The '693 patent expressly notes certain disadvantages with the currentroadway marking technology. Under the heading “Description of the PriorArt,” as column 1, lines 11-40, the '693 patent states: “Road markingsare produced to a great extent with the assistance of so called ‘roadmarking’ machines which apply paint under pressure from spray nozzlejets onto the road surface. In marking the road it is quite importantthat the horizontal registration of the paint be accurate with respectto the position of the road. In the past even experienced machineoperators have found it difficult to manually guide a road markingmachine with sufficient accuracy even where old markings are available.Heretofore, attempts have been made to automatically detect the presenceof old markings and to use their detection for automatically guiding theroad marking machine and switching the spray nozzle on and off asrequired. However, such attempts have not been wholly satisfactorybecause a break in the old marking does not give steering guidanceduring breaks. Moreover, this approach is of no use whatsoever where theold marks have disappeared or for new markings. Various arrangementshave been disclosed for solving these problems by automatically guidingthe road marking machine along a pre-determined path using light orelectromagnetic beams. However, these arrangements require transmittersto be placed along the road, and in the case of light beams, aredegraded by the effect of sunlight. In order to overcome these problems,it has been proposed to embed material [that] emitting radiation in thepath that is to be marked. However, this method suffers from thedisadvantage that embedding the radiating material in the road surfacecan be costly. Furthermore, radiating materials tend to lose theireffectiveness after a time period. Similar issues pertain to parkinglots, air landing fields, and the like.”

Although Manning identifies certain disadvantages with the known roadwaymarking technology, the GPS-controlled paint spray system disclosed byManning in the '693 and '934 patents has its own disadvantages. First, adesigner must generate a drawing and it must be assumed that thedesigner has accurately generated the drawing pattern. It must befurther assumed that the actual constructed road matches the content ofthe drawing pattern. And the system fails if a discrepancy existsbetween the actual and drawing pattern road position.

In addition, the disclosed system cannot maintain the accuratehorizontal registration of the paint markings which is required when thedrawing pattern does not accurately match the actual constructedroadway. This situation occurs where on-site construction changes areprompted by unforeseen construction problems. Such problems include, forexample, bedrock formations, unstable ground structure, water runoff,and the like.

The designer using the system disclosed by Manning must determine andenter data corresponding to the reference geographical location for thecenter of the drawing, scaling information, orientation information, andother aspect ratio information to accurately determine the marking sizeand orientation. Thus, the system may require registration, orientation,and size input. The designer also must enter data manually for roadmarkings, such as end points for a line, or an equation using knowngeographical location coordinates. This includes known coordinates froma previous survey. The system assumes that the designer can accuratelydetermine geographical mark locations.

For an arc, the designer must select the end points and a radius. Suchselection does not allow for a smoothly constructed functional fit. Thedesigner must manually join line segments used to make a relatively longcontinuous painted line. The track line, which is a line, is producedfrom individual points and is not a smoothly derived curve from amathematically derived function.

The system disclosed by Manning relies on an available equation. It doesnot sample pre-existing roadway marks (or produce a set of spacedpoints). The system does not record cross track position relative to aGPS receiver. The '693 patent does not disclose any mechanism forproducing a curved line. Finally, the system disclosed by Manning paintsonly when there is a location match between the current GPS-basedlocation and one of the data points in the geographical mark locationdata.

Others have attempted to use a combination of video-grammetry (imagers)and navigation tools (GPS systems for example) to map roadway featuresincluding roadway marks. For example, a study of precise road featurelocalization using a mobile mapping system has been completed. Todetermine the location of a roadway mark, however, an operator mustmanually select the feature position (i.e., roadway mark) on thecamera's u-v coordinates using a manual digitizing tool. Theconventionally defined east, north, up (ENU) coordinates of the manuallyselected feature are then determined by the mobile mapping system.

This system is prone to positional inaccuracies of the operator and isnot completely automated. Individual selection of each roadway mark istime consuming and dependent upon the skill and experience of theoperator. Furthermore, no mechanism is provided to automatically inspectthe roadway marks for reflectivity and contrast; length and widthdimensions; mark fill percentage; and other important quality standards.

Thus, there is a need in the industry for a roadway surface markingsystem that requires less manual labor, increases the operational safetyfactor for workers, and is less expensive than the current roadwaymarking technology, and which will accurately and uniformly mark roadwayrepaved surfaces.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

To meet the needs identified above and others which will be apparentfrom a review of the current technology, and in view of its purposes,the present invention provides GPS-based systems used for painting orotherwise “marking” roadway traffic lane demarcation lines, vehiclemounted locating and inspection systems for determining the geographicallocation and condition of roadway marks, and apparatus, systems, andmethods for acquiring and remotely analyzing roadway mark location andinspection data.

To overcome the shortcomings of current roadway marking technology, anew apparatus and method for placing marks on a resurfaced (or repaved)roadway are provided. A basic object of the present invention is toprovide an improved apparatus for automatically marking repavedroadways. A related object is to sample the geographical position of apre-existing roadway mark path. A further related object is to samplethe geographical position of a pre-existing roadway mark path using aGPS or GPS-based pseudolite array system.

It is another object of the invention to determine a continuous markpath based upon the sampled geographical mark path. It is still anotherobject of the present invention to quickly determine the pre-existingroadway mark characteristics, pattern, and geographical position. Anadditional object is to accurately deposit paint or other markingmaterial onto a repaved roadway replicating the pre-existing mark atlocations determined by the continuous mark path.

Yet another object of the invention is to automatically create a secondcontinuous roadway mark path substantially parallel to the original markpath. It is a further object of the invention to accurately depositpaint or other marking material onto a repaved roadway at the locationdetermined by the second continuous roadway mark path. It is yet anotherobject of the invention to provide a system for guiding the driver ofthe roadway marking vehicle. A related object is to dispense an even andconsistent paint mark irrespective of vehicle speed. The invention hasas another object automatically guiding the paint vehicle along the markpath based upon a mark path continuous function.

The present invention also provides an apparatus and method forautomatically determining the geographical location of a pre-existingroadway mark. The present invention provides for an apparatus and methodfor automatically determining the geographical location of apre-existing roadway mark from a moving vehicle. For example, thegeographical location of a pre-existing roadway mark may be determinedfrom an image of the mark. It is another object of the invention todetermine the GPS geographical location of a pre-existing mark from animage of the mark. It is yet another object of the invention to samplethe geographical location of a roadway mark.

The present invention provides for an apparatus and method to imageroadway marks from a moving vehicle. It is another object of theinvention to image roadway marks to the left and to the right sides of amoving vehicle. It is still yet another object of the invention to imageroadway lane demarcation marks from a moving vehicle travelling withinthe lane. One or more imagers may be mounted onto the side of the movingvehicle to image roadway marks. It is another object of the invention toprovide for a rotational mount for affixing the imager to the side ofthe vehicle. It is another object of the invention to provide for aremovable rotational mount which is quickly and easily affixed to, andremoved from, the side of a vehicle.

Another object of the invention is to accurately synchronize mark imageswith their respective GPS geographical locations. Additional objects ofthe invention are to automatically determine the quality of roadwaymarks and to automatically compare the actual image of a roadway markwith a standard image of the roadway mark. A related object of theinvention is to automatically determine the length and width of roadwaymarks and the relative spacing between consecutive or adjacent roadwaymarks from the roadway mark images. A further object of the invention isto determine the area of the roadway mark. For example, the apparatusand method may automatically determine the area fill percentage of aroadway mark. A still further object of the invention is toautomatically determine the reflective contrast between the roadwaysurface and the roadway mark. Yet another object of the invention is toautomatically determine the geographical position of roadway marks whichdo not meet the acceptable standards. The invention has as an object toprovide for an imaging system to image roadway marks during low ambientlight conditions.

The invention further provides an apparatus for placing marks on aresurfaced roadway. The apparatus includes a GPS-based locator forsampling discrete geographical location data of a pre-existing roadwaymark evident on the roadway before resurfacing. A computer determines acontinuous smooth geographical location function fitted to the sampledgeographical location data. And a marker is responsive to the GPS-basedlocator and geographical location function for replicating automaticallythe pre-existing roadway mark onto the resurfaced roadway. The apparatusis typically part of a moving vehicle. A related method is disclosed forplacing marks on a resurfaced roadway. A similar apparatus can be usedto guide a vehicle having a snow plow, paver, or other similar equipmentalong a roadway.

According to another aspect, the present invention provides an apparatusand method for minimizing the amount of imaged roadway area data neededfor analyzing roadway mark images. It is an object of the invention toprovide an apparatus and method for filtering the imaged roadway area tominimize the amount of imaged roadway area data needed for analyzingroadway mark images. The present invention also provides an apparatusand method for compressing the roadway mark image to minimize the amountof imaged roadway mark data needed for analysis. It is another object ofthe invention to provide an apparatus and method for encrypting theroadway mark image to provide for secure roadway mark data storage andtransmission of roadway mark data.

One object of the invention is to provide an apparatus and method forminimizing the amount of roadway mark image data while also preservingthe fidelity (e.g., accuracy) of the roadway mark image. The inventionprovides an apparatus and method for minimizing the amount of roadwayimage data while preserving the fidelity of the roadway mark image forfurther analysis. It is a further object of the invention to provide anapparatus and method for minimizing the amount of roadway image datawhile preserving the fidelity of the roadway mark image for furthercomputer-based image analyses. An apparatus and method for minimizingthe amount of roadway image data while preserving the fidelity of theroadway mark image for further computer-based image analyses may includedetermining the characteristics of the roadway mark.

It is a further object of the invention to provide an apparatus andmethod for minimizing the amount of roadway image data collected by amoving vehicle while preserving the fidelity of the roadway mark imagefor further computer-based image analyses including determining thecharacteristics of the roadway mark. The invention provides an apparatusand method for minimizing the amount of roadway image data collected bya moving vehicle while preserving the fidelity of the roadway mark imageand further, to transmit these data to a remotely located facility forperforming computer-based image analyses including determining thecharacteristics of the roadway mark. It is a further object of theinvention to provide an apparatus and method for minimizing the amountof roadway image data collected by a moving vehicle while preserving thefidelity of the roadway mark image and further, to transmit these datato a remotely located facility for performing computer-based imageanalyses including determining the characteristics of the roadway mark,the geographical location of the roadway mark, and a best-fit roadwaymark path function. The present invention also provides an apparatus andmethod for minimizing the amount of roadway image data collected by amoving vehicle while preserving the fidelity of the roadway mark imageand further, to transmit these data to a remotely located facility forperforming computer-based image analyses including determining thecharacteristics of the roadway mark, the geographical location of theroadway mark, the best-fit roadway mark path function, and the qualityof the roadway mark.

According to another aspect of the present invention, an apparatus andmethod are provided for minimizing the amount of roadway image datacollected by a moving vehicle while preserving the fidelity of theroadway mark image and further, for transmitting these data to aremotely located facility for performing computer-based image analysesincluding comparing the roadway mark characteristics against a set ofroadway mark standards for determining the quality of the roadway marks.It is a further object of the invention to provide an apparatus whichminimizes the amount of memory necessary to remotely store roadway markimages. In particular, the invention provides an apparatus whichminimizes the amount of computer memory necessary to store roadway markimages.

The invention also provides an apparatus which minimizes the amount ofcomputer memory necessary to store roadway mark images while preservingthe fidelity of the roadway mark image. It is a further object of theinvention to provide an apparatus which minimizes the amount of computermemory necessary to store roadway mark images while preserving thefidelity of the roadway mark image for further analysis. In particular,the invention provides an apparatus which minimizes the amount ofcomputer memory necessary to store roadway mark images while preservingthe fidelity of the roadway mark image for further computer-basedanalysis.

It is yet another object of the invention to provide an apparatus whichminimizes the amount of roadway image data for transmission to a remotesite from one or more imaging vehicles. The invention provides anapparatus which minimizes the amount of roadway mark image data fortransmission to a remote site from one or more imaging vehicles. Inparticular, the invention provides an apparatus which minimizes theamount of roadway mark image data for transmission to a remote sitewhile maintaining the roadway mark image fidelity.

According to yet another aspect, the invention provides an apparatuswhich computes the roadway mark characteristics from one or more imagingvehicles. In one embodiment, the invention provides an apparatus whichremotely computes the roadway mark characteristics from one or moreimaging vehicles. It is one object of the invention to provide anapparatus which remotely computes the continuous mark path and roadwaymark characteristics from one or more imaging vehicles. It is yetanother object of the invention to provide an apparatus which remotelycomputes the continuous mark path and roadway mark characteristics fromone or more imaging vehicles and transmits the continuous mark path androadway mark characteristics to a remotely located vehicle. It is stillyet another object of the invention to provide an apparatus whichremotely computes the continuous mark path and roadway markcharacteristics from one or more imaging vehicles and transmits thecontinuous mark path and roadway mark characteristics to a remotelylocated vehicle via the internet. In particular, the invention providesan apparatus which remotely computes the continuous mark path androadway mark characteristics from one or more imaging vehicles andtransmits the continuous mark path and roadway mark characteristics to aremotely located vehicle via a wireless communication link.

In one embodiment, the invention provides an apparatus which remotelycomputes the continuous mark path and roadway mark characteristics fromone or more imaging vehicles and performs quality comparisons. Forexample, the invention provides for an apparatus which remotely computesthe continuous mark path and roadway mark characteristics from one ormore imaging vehicles and performs an image stitching process whichgenerates a complete, accurate, and contiguous replication of thepre-existing roadway mark along the roadway mark path.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become moreclear following a review of the specification and drawings. It is to beunderstood that both the foregoing general description and the followingdetailed description are exemplary, but are not restrictive, of theinvention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

The invention is best understood from the following detailed descriptionwhen read in connection with the accompanying drawing. It is emphasizedthat, according to common practice, the various features of the drawingare not to scale. On the contrary, the dimensions of the variousfeatures are arbitrarily expanded or reduced for clarity. Included inthe drawing are the following figures:

FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic plan view of a vehicle fitted with theapparatus according to the present invention and moving along a road;

FIG. 2 is a diagrammatic side view of a vehicle fitted with theapparatus according to the present invention, illustrating additionalcomponents of the apparatus;

FIG. 3 is a schematic block diagram illustrating components of apreferred embodiment of the apparatus according to the presentinvention;

FIG. 4 is a schematic block diagram illustrating components of acomputer of a preferred embodiment of the apparatus shown in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a schematic block diagram illustrating components of a displayof the preferred embodiment of the apparatus shown in FIG. 3;

FIG. 6 is a top view of a vehicle having one embodiment of the inventionand moving along a roadway lane defined by roadway marks;

FIG. 7 is a front view of the vehicle shown in FIG. 6 illustrating theplacement of the GPS antenna and side mounted imagers;

FIG. 8 is a detailed side view of a first imager positioned to image aroadway mark;

FIG. 9 a is a front view of the adjustable imager mount;

FIG. 9 b is a side view of the adjustable imager mount shown in FIG. 9a;

FIG. 9 c is a perspective view of an L-shaped bracket used for affixingthe adjustable imager mount to the roof of a vehicle;

FIG. 10 is a side view of a magnetic clamp for affixing the imager mountto the side of a vehicle;

FIG. 11 is a block diagram of one embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 12 is a timing diagram illustrating a periodic GPS receiver timingpulse;

FIG. 13 is a block diagram of a phase lock loop having a programmabledivider inserted into the phase lock loop feedback signal path;

FIG. 14 is a timing diagram illustrating a periodic GPS receiver timingpulse and synchronization circuit output;

FIG. 15 is a block diagram illustrating a computer used in the presentinvention, which includes a computer operating system, program memory,and data memory;

FIG. 16 is a timing diagram showing GPS receiver time latency;

FIG. 17 is a schematic block diagram showing the data input and dataoutput of the machine vision and inspection programs;

FIG. 18 a is an image of a roadway mark having 100% area fill;

FIG. 18 b is an image of a roadway mark having less than 100% area fill;

FIG. 19 illustrates the computer display showing an image of the roadwaycenter and edge marks along with an arrow representing the vehiclelocation relative to the two marks;

FIG. 20 is an example of a left or right side image of the firstposition roadway area having a continuous roadway mark element;

FIG. 21 is a top view of the vehicle shown in FIG. 6 but at a secondposition longitudinally displaced from the first position in thedirection of vehicle travel;

FIG. 22 is a perspective front view of the vehicle of FIG. 21illustrating the placement of the GPS antenna and side mounted imagers;

FIG. 23 is a left or right side image of the second position roadwayarea illustrating the image of a discontinuous roadway mark element;

FIG. 24 a is a left or right side image of another roadway area showingthe end of one roadway mark segment and the beginning of the nextroadway mark segment;

FIG. 24 b is an image of another roadway area having no roadway marksegments;

FIG. 25 is a block diagram of the components provided in or affixed tothe moving vehicle according to one preferred embodiment of theinvention;

FIG. 26 is a block diagram of the computer memory having program memorysoftware programs including the synchronization and interpolation, imagefiltering, machine vision, inspection and image compression andencryption programs;

FIG. 27 is a flowchart schematic showing the image filtering, imagecompression, and image encryption programs along with their respectivedata blocks;

FIG. 28 is a view of a cropped roadway image overlaid upon the originalroadway image;

FIG. 29 is a block diagram of components provided at a remote repositoryand processing facility;

FIG. 30 is a block diagram of the computer memory having program memorysoftware programs including the image decryption program, image inversecompression program, image inverse filter program, image stitchingprogram and inspection program of the remote repository and processingfacility;

FIG. 31 is a flowchart schematic showing the image decryption, imageinverse compression and image inverse filtering programs along withtheir respective data blocks of the remote repository and processingfacility;

FIG. 32 is a flowchart schematic showing the machine vision program andinspection program along with their respective data blocks of the remoterepository processing facility;

FIG. 33 a is a diagram showing a time sequence of cropped roadwayimages; and

FIG. 33 b is a diagram showing the recreated roadway mark and mark pathproduced from an image stitching program.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides GPS-based systems used for painting orotherwise marking roadway traffic lane demarcation lines, vehiclemounted locating and inspection systems for determining the geographicallocation and condition of roadway marks, and apparatus, systems, andmethods for acquiring and remotely analyzing roadway mark location andinspection data. Referring now to the drawing, in which like referencenumbers refer to like elements throughout the various figures thatcomprise the drawing, FIG. 1 shows a moving or self-propelled vehicle 1which is located on a road or roadway 2 near a line 3 applied to thesurface of the road 2. Also shown is a roadway edge boundary line 4. Theterm “vehicle” used in this document is given its broadest meaning,including any conveyance, motorized device, or moving piece ofmechanical equipment for transporting passengers or apparatus. Morespecific and preferred examples of vehicles 1 are cars, vans, trucks,snow plows, construction equipment, and road marking machines. The terms“road” and “roadway” are used interchangeably in this document toinclude any road, highway, street, avenue, alley, boulevard, bridge,viaduct, trestle, or the like, and approaches to them (including publicand private roads and parking lots) designed or ordinarily used forvehicular travel.

Roadway Marking

According to one embodiment, the present invention provides an apparatusfor placing marks on a resurfaced roadway 2. The apparatus includes aGPS-based locator for sampling discrete geographical location data of apre-existing roadway mark evident on the roadway 2 before resurfacing; acomputer 27 for determining a continuous smooth geographical locationfunction fitted to the sampled geographical location data; and a markerresponsive to the GPS-based locator and geographical location functionfor replicating automatically the pre-existing roadway mark onto theresurfaced roadway 2.

As illustrated in FIG. 2, the vehicle 1 is fitted with a number ofcomponents. Specifically illustrated in FIG. 2 are a GPS antenna 15, acomputer 27, a first imager 53, a second imager 54, a nozzle array andcontrol system 62, and a moveable cross track carriage 67. FIG. 1 showsthat the vehicle 1 may be fitted with any number of second imagers 54(three are shown).

FIG. 3 is a schematic block diagram 5 illustrating components of apreferred embodiment of the apparatus according to the presentinvention. The preferred embodiment comprises a number of components andsystems which include the GPS antenna 15, a GPS receiver 22, thecomputer 27, a visual display 32, a keyboard 35, the first imager 53,the second imager 54, the nozzle array and control system 62, themoveable cross track carriage 67, a servo control system 72, a speeddetector 79, and a vehicle navigation and control system 80. All of thecomponents and systems with the exception of the moveable cross trackcarriage 67 are electrically interconnected, and in communication witheach other, for example, via a bus 52.

The GPS antenna 15 receives GPS radio wave signals 10 which originatefrom a GPS satellite system or a GPS-pseudolite array (not shown).“Pseudolite” is a contraction of the term “pseudo-satellite,” used torefer to something that is not a satellite which performs a functioncommonly in the domain of satellites. Pseudolites are typically smalltransceivers that are used to create a local, ground-based GPSalternative. The range of each transceiver's signal depends on the poweravailable to the unit. Being able to deploy one's own positioningsystem, independent of the GPS, can be useful in situations where thenormal GPS signals are either blocked or jammed (e.g., in deference tomilitary conflicts), or simply not available.

The GPS antenna 15 is connected to the input of the GPS receiver 22,which decodes the GPS signals 10 for determining its geographicallocation. The receiver 22 is further electrically connected to the bus52, and is in bi-directional communication with the other components andsystems connected to the bus 52. The GPS geographic position of theantenna 15 is adjusted to account for any physical separation of thenozzle array and control system 62 from the antenna 15, so that theactual geographical position of the nozzle array and control system 62is determined by the decoded GPS signals 10.

The computer 27 is a conventional computer having data and programmemory as shown in FIG. 4. Operating system (OS) software 230 is aconventional operating system such as Windows 7 manufactured byMicrosoft, a Unix-based OS, or an Apple Computer OS X Lion operatingsystem. The computer 27 also has program memory 240 and data memory 300,in addition to the memory required by the operating system 230. Thecomputer 27 further has a real-time time base for calculating accuratetime intervals (not shown).

The program memory 240 comprises a location comparator program 250, asampling program 260, a machine vision program 270, a curve fittingprogram 280, and a curve offsetting program 290. The location comparatorprogram 250 compares the current adjusted GPS location received by theantenna 15 and decoded by the GPS receiver 22 to previous GPS locationsstored in data memory 300 (along with the characteristics of thepre-existing roadway mark, including type, geometry, and dimensions).The location comparator program 250 then determines the differencebetween the current adjusted and the stored GPS locations.

The sampling program 260 receives a GPS reference location andconstructs an orthogonal Cartesian (or other conventional) coordinatesystem (grid system) 16 (see FIG. 2) having the origin defined at thereference location and further, based upon the constructed grid systemand the distance sampling interval, samples the geographical location ofthe pre-existing roadway mark. The machine vision program 270 inputsdata from the imagers 53 and 54 and performs edge detection, geometriccomputations, and other generic machine vision operations on the imagedata from the imagers 53 and 54.

The curve fitting program 280 inputs discrete GPS coordinate data storedin the data memory 300 and determines a first continuous mathematicalfunction which fits the discrete GPS coordinate data. The curveoffsetting program 290 inputs the continuous function determined by thecurve fitting program 280 and generates a second continuous functionsimilar and parallel to the first function but offset from the firstfunction by a given distance. For example, the first function mayrepresent the center mark line 3 on the road 2. A second functiondefining a roadway edge mark line 4 may be derived from the firstfunction by offsetting the first function by a distance, or the firstfunction may represent a roadway edge mark line 4 and the center markline 3 may be derived from the first function by offsetting the firstfunction by a distance.

Thus, the present invention can further be embodied in the form ofcomputer-implemented processes and apparatus for practicing suchprocesses, for example, and can be embodied in the form of computerprogram code embodied in tangible media, such as floppy diskettes, fixed(hard) drives, CD ROM's, magnetic tape, fixed/integrated circuitdevices, or any other computer-readable storage medium, such that whenthe computer program code is loaded into and executed by the computer27, the computer 27 becomes an apparatus for practicing the invention.The program also may be embodied in a carrier where the carrier may be atangible media or a transmitted carrier wave.

The display 32 is a conventional or heads-up computer display adapted topresent information to an operator. The display 32 is capable ofdisplaying one or more windows such as an operator may view using awindows-based operating system. Preferably the display 32 contains aleft window 400 and a right window 450 as shown in FIG. 5. The leftwindow 400 displays the image from the first imager 53. Displayed withinthe left window 400 are a cross travel bar 420; a yellow,rectangle-shaped roadway mark 440 imaged by the first imager 53 locatedproximate the rear of the vehicle 1; and the position of the nozzlearray and control system 62 represented by the arrow 430. The rightwindow 450 of the display 32 depicts the image from the second imager 54which images the roadway mark path 470 in front of the vehicle 1. Alsodisplayed within the right window 450 is a red alignment box 460.

The keyboard 35 permits the operator to manually enter data similar to aconventional computer keyboard. The keyboard 35 is connected to the bus52. Alternatively, the keyboard 35 may be directly connected to thecomputer 27.

The first imager 53 may be fixedly attached to the vehicle 1. Asillustrated in FIG. 2, the first imager 53 is downwardly focused ontothe surface of the road 2 such that its field of view includes theentire roadway surface under the moveable cross track carriage 67. Thesecond imager 54 is also fixedly attached to the vehicle 1 and, asillustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, focused to image the roadway surface infront of the vehicle 1 so that a clear image of the roadway mark isvisible.

The nozzle array and control system 62 is mounted onto the moveablecross track carriage 67. One or more nozzle jets may be incorporatedinto the nozzle array and control system 62 for spraying (or otherwiseplacing or delivering) one of more lines of paint (or any other suitablemarking material). The paint may be the same or a different color. Othermaterial may be sprayed onto the surface of the road 2 with the paint,such as glass beads instead of just the paint. In addition, the nozzlearray and control system 62 is responsive to the speed of the vehicle 1,as determined by the speed detector 79, and adjusts the dispensing rateof the paint dependent upon the speed of the vehicle 1 to maintain thesame paint thickness irrespective of the speed of the vehicle 1. Thenozzle array and control system 62 compensates for positional offsets ofthe individual jets, such that the GPS coordinates for the individualjets are determined.

The moveable cross track carriage 67 may be (although not necessarily)mounted on the rear (as shown in FIG. 1) or on the back driver's side(as shown in FIG. 2) of the vehicle 1. The moveable cross track carriage67 laterally moves to position the nozzle array over the roadway markline. Hydraulic or electrical actuators mounted on the vehicle 1 areused to position the moveable cross track carriage 67 over the roadwaymark line.

The servo control system 72 is responsive to control signals placed ontothe bus 52 and is responsive to the machine vision program 270. Theservo control system 72 controls the hydraulic or electrical actuators.Thus, the servo control system 72 controllably moves the moveable crosstrack carriage 67 to a desired cross track position.

The speed detector 79 determines the speed of the vehicle 1. The vehiclespeed may be determined by conventional mechanisms such as an electronicspeedometer.

The vehicle navigation system 80 is a conventional automated system forcontrolling the direction, speed, and acceleration of the vehicle 1along a predetermined path. As used in this document, “predetermined” ismeant determined beforehand, so that the predetermined characteristicmust be determined, i.e., chosen or at least known, in advance of someevent. The navigation system 80 includes both the hardware and softwarenecessary to completely control the movement of the vehicle 1 along apath without human intervention. The apparatus described above forms aGPS-based system used for painting, or otherwise “marking,” roadwaytraffic lane demarcation lines.

In operation, the apparatus according to the present invention can beused as follows. The operator of the vehicle 1 first positions thevehicle 1 at the start of the desired roadway mark and in a direction oftravel for recording the mark path. The first imager 53 images thesurface of the road 2 under the complete moveable cross track carriage67 travel distance and the operator positions the vehicle 1 so that animage of the roadway mark appears in the left window 400 of the display32. The machine vision program 270 recognizes the roadway mark anddetermines the amount of cross travel necessary to align the crosstravel carriage 67 to the mark center. A control signal is then sent tothe servo control system 72 from the machine vision program 270 to moveand align the moveable cross track carriage 67 having the attachednozzle array and control system 62 to the center of the mark. Alignmentis displayed as a red arrow 430 centered on the imaged roadway mark 440.The imaged mark along with the aligned red arrow relative to the crosstravel bar 420 is shown in FIG. 5. The cross travel bar 420 gives theoperator a visual indication of the maximum cross travel distance of themoveable cross track carriage 67.

The operator then enters the positional sampling interval by using thekeyboard 35, which is then sent by the computer 27 to the samplingprogram 260. The operator then depresses a “Start-to-Record” key on thekeyboard 35 which begins the process of recording the geographicallocation and characteristics of the mark. The reference location isdetermined as the geographical position of the aligned moveable crosstrack carriage 67 (corrected for any positional offsets of the antenna15) when the Start-to-Record key is depressed. The roadway mark may be asolid or dashed, single or double line, or any combination thereof. Forexample, a roadway mark may consist of a solid line and a paralleldashed line in close proximity to the solid line, such as a conventionalroadway mark to indicate that passing in one direction is allowed butpassing in the opposite direction is not allowed.

Once the Start-to-Record key is depressed, the computer 27 begins toinput the vehicle speed data from the speed detector 79. The operatorthen begins to move the vehicle 1 in the direction of the roadway markpath 470 and uses the right window 450 of the display 32 to assist inmaintaining the vehicle path coincident with the roadway mark path 470(shown for a middle rear mounted cross track carriage 67, see FIG. 1).The operator steers the vehicle 1 so that the roadway mark path 470 ismaintained within the red alignment box 460. Maintaining the vehicle 1within the red alignment box 460 insures that the servo control system72 along with the machine vision program 270 will be able to positionthe moveable cross track carriage 67 within the cross travel limitationsindicated by the cross travel bar 420 of the moveable cross trackcarriage 67 along the roadway mark path 470.

Geographical position data of the mark are sequentially sampled andstored in the data memory 300 of the computer 27 using the samplingprogram 260 and the Cartesian coordinate system (see the orthogonal x,y, and z axes shown in FIG. 2). The geographical positional samplingoccurs at a distance interval previously defined by the operator alongone of the Cartesian coordinate system axis. Sampling of thegeographical position for the roadway mark path 470 occurs when thevehicle 1 has travelled the sampling interval which is calculated by thesampling program 260 using the decoded GPS positional data from the GPSreceiver 22 and the Cartesian coordinate system. Alternatively, thesampling distance can be calculated using the speed detector 79 and thetime base of the computer 27.

As the vehicle 1 passes over the mark, the computer 27 determines thelength, width, color, and the number of lines (single, double) of themark by using the machine vision program 270 and the speed of thevehicle 1 derived from the speed detector 79 and the time base of thecomputer 27. The characteristics of the mark are also stored within thedata memory 300. If the mark characteristics change from one form toanother as the vehicle 1 transverses the roadway mark path 470, themachine vision program 270 recognizes the change in the markcharacteristics and stores the geographical location of the change,along with the new mark characteristics. For example, dashed marks maychange to a solid line mark, and a double solid line mark may change toa single dashed line mark. The geographical position of the change inmark characteristics is recorded along with the sampled mark path.

At the end of the roadway mark path 470, the operator depresses a“Stop-Record” key on the keyboard 35, which terminates the process ofsampling and storing the mark geographical location and markcharacteristics. In addition, upon depression of the Stop-Record key,the curve fitting program 280 determines a continuous mark path functionusing a curve fitting algorithm over the mark path interval using theCartesian coordinate system determined by the sampling program 260. Theoriginal mark path is now defined as a continuous function referenced tothe start location and to the grid pattern of the Cartesian coordinatesystem.

The roadway is now ready to be repaved. The process of repavingcompletely covers all remnants of the old roadway mark. Alternatively,the old roadway mark is removed by physical mechanisms such as by wirebrushing, by grinding, by water jetting or blasting, or by some otherconventional mechanism.

To re-establish or replicate the roadway mark at the same location, thelocation comparator program 250 compares the current GPS location of themoveable cross track carriage 67 (along with the nozzle array andcontrol system 62 with positional offset correction) with the referencelocation previously stored in the data memory 300. The locationcomparator program 250 then further displays positional instructions tothe operator of the vehicle 1 in the left window 400 of the display 32for assisting the operator in positioning the red arrow of the moveablecross track carriage 67 in close proximity to the reference position.

Once the vehicle 1 has been approximately positioned at the referencepoint, the machine vision program 270 displays the original markpreviously stored in the data memory 300 into the left window 400 of thedisplay 32 and commands the servo control system 72 to move the crosstravel carriage 67 into alignment with the reference position. Inaddition, the right window 450 of the display 32 now displays theoriginal mark path for the operator to follow along with the redalignment box 460 to assist the operator in maintaining alignment of thecross track carriage 67 to the desired position given by the previouslydetermined mark path continuous function.

After the cross track carriage 67 has been aligned with the referenceposition, the operator depresses the “Start-to-Repaint” key on thekeyboard 35 and begins to move the vehicle 1 along the roadway mark path470 displayed (along with the actual mark) in the right window 450 ofthe display 32. The displayed roadway mark path 470 is now derived fromthe mark path continuous function.

As the vehicle 1 moves, the location comparator program 250 compares theposition of the cross track carriage 67 with the roadway mark path 470defined by the continuous function and generates an error signalrepresenting the difference between the actual cross track carriage 67geographical position and the continuous function mark path geographicalposition. This error signal is used by the servo control system 72 tomove the cross track carriage 67 back onto the roadway mark path 470defined by the continuous function. As the vehicle 1 moves along theroadway mark path 470 defined by the continuous function, the previouslystored mark location and characteristic data are compared to the current(position corrected) GPS location of the cross track carriage 67 and therespective mark is replicated onto the surface of the road 2 by thenozzle array and control system 62.

Depending upon the speed of the vehicle 1, the nozzle array and controlsystem 62 dispenses the appropriate volume of paint responsive to thespeed of the vehicle 1 derived from the speed detector 79 to maintainthe desired paint thickness. For example, a slow moving vehicle 1 woulddispense paint at a slower rate than that for a fast moving vehicle 1which would require dispensing paint at a faster rate to maintainconsistency of paint thickness.

The apparatus and method described above in accordance with a preferredembodiment of the invention give the operator the ability to sample anexisting roadway mark using GPS or pseudolite technology. Sampling ofthe roadway mark requires discrete geographical points which may beaccomplished, depending upon the acquisition speed of the geographicalpositioning system, at a sampling vehicle speed which will minimallyimpact the flow of regular traffic.

The apparatus and method use conventional curve fitting techniques toproduce a continuous function representing the mark path from thesampled data points and yield a consistently smooth curve. Such curvefitting techniques are unlike the joining of linear line segments whichhave a tendency to have a jagged, or “put-together,” appearance. Thecurve fitting of only one roadway mark (e.g., the centerline of a mark)is required and any additional roadway marks (e.g., the roadway edgeboundary line 4) may be obtained by offsetting the continuous functionderived from a first continuous mark path by an amount consistent withthe desired relative position of the second mark path. For example, todefine a side roadway mark using a centered defined functional mark pathrequires only a simple mathematical operation of offsetting the originalfunctional mark path by a desired distance (typically the width of thetraffic lane). This technique guarantees exact parallel placement of theside mark with respect to the center mark.

In addition, the actual sampling of a pre-existing roadway mark ensuresthat, after repavement of the roadway 2 is completed, the new repaintedmark will be placed in exactly the same position on the roadway 2 as theprevious mark. For known systems that convert a drawing pattern intogeographical coordinates for painting a surface, a problem arises in thefield where the actual drawn pattern is not compatible with the actualfield requirements. For example, sometimes the roadway must be changedas the result of a rock formation or other obstructions. Further,roadway positions are frequently changed to accommodate commercial orresidential development in a particular area. A predetermined drawingpattern unfortunately does not reflect the reality of changes in theroad position as the result of field-induced changes. Thus, any systemusing a drawing pattern may not reflect the actual road position and,therefore, may not accurately mark the roadway 2. The apparatus andmethod according to a preferred embodiment of the invention avoid theseproblems.

Another improvement over the known systems is that the original roadwaymark is characterized according to type (color, dashed, continuous, orother) and geometrical dimensions (length, width, and the like). This isan important consideration for maintaining the exact mark sequence for amark path. For example, a portion of the mark path may have a dashedyellow mark and another portion of the mark path may have a continuouswhite mark. This information is used to selectively choose the correctcolor and also to control the spray width and dispensing cycle so thatthe original mark may be exactly reproduced.

The apparatus and method for placing (printing) marks on a resurfacedroadway 2, according to a preferred embodiment of the invention, achievenumerous additional advantages over the known technology. Among thoseadvantages are the following:

1. Geographically sampling the coordinates of pre-existing roadway marksusing GPS technology;

2. Computing a continuous function to determine the mark path from themark samples;

3. Automatically duplicating and re-painting the roadway mark patternsdepending upon the previous mark pattern;

4. Accurately depositing roadway mark patterns such as continuous ordashed lines independent of the speed of the vehicle 1;

5. Providing for automatic and semi-automatic vehicle alignment and/ormovement on the mark path;

6. Automatically determining pre-existing mark geometriccharacteristics;

7. Coordinating the material spray dispensing rate in response tovehicle speed;

8. Protecting workers completely from vehicular traffic and weather;

9. Reducing work force requirements because only one operator isrequired both to determine the geographical coordinates of existingroadway marks and to re-paint the marks;

10. Converting the mark samples and geometric characteristics into apattern;

11. Automatically adding a positional offset to re-paint other roadwaymarks which can be mathematically offset from the sampled mark path; and

12. Providing for a smooth and continuous mark path.

The apparatus and method for placing marks on a resurfaced roadway 2,according to a preferred embodiment of the invention, use a GPS-basedlocation system to sample the geographical position of an existingroadway mark. Although many of the known patents use GPS for positionalinformation to determine the location of vehicles, the apparatus andmethod of the present invention singularly use GPS to determine thegeographical position of an existing roadway mark. The advantages ofdetermining the roadway mark before repaving or re-painting include: (1)determining the exact location of the mark; and (2) from thisinformation, using a mathematical model to form a continuous geometricalfunction of the mark path. The GPS-based location system includes anyGPS pseudolite or GPS-like, self-calibrating, pseudolite array systemand is not restricted to any one GPS technology.

Geographical sampling requires discrete geographical data along the markpath. A continuous geographical path is not required. A vehicle 1equipped with the apparatus of the present invention will be able totravel at moderate speed with respect to the current traffic flow andwill only need to sample the roadway mark along the mark path atdiscrete points.

The apparatus of the present invention uses the sampled positions of theroadway mark to determine a continuous mathematical function whichprovides a smoothly varying function representing the actual mark path.Although the Manning patents disclose that the designer of a drawingpattern can use linear interpolation between two points for a roadwaymark, and then these individual line segments can be joined to make arelatively long continuous painted line, or the designer may use apre-existing equation using known geographical location coordinates asindependent variables within the drawing pattern, no mathematicalcomputation is disclosed which determines a “best fit” continuousgeographical location equation based upon the actual sampled roadwaymark locations. The apparatus of the present invention calculates a“best fit” equation.

The apparatus also automatically re-paints roadway marks depending uponthe previous mark type. The mark type and dimensional characteristicsare used in combination with the determined vehicle speed to control thepaint dispensing unit. Thus, the unit accurately and uniformly re-paintsthe prior existing mark onto the repaved or milled roadway surface.

The apparatus provides for automatic and semi-automatic vehiclealignment and movement on a path. A vehicle navigation system (an“auto-pilot”) maintains the vehicle 1 on the roadway mark path 470. Thedesired mark location is mathematically determined using sampledgeographical positions from the old mark. A comparison is then madebetween the actual mark location and the desired mark location. An errorsignal is determined based upon this difference which is used by theauto-pilot to correct the position of the vehicle 1.

A visual indication of the position of the vehicle 1 with respect to theroadway mark path 470 is also provided. The display 32 helps the driverof the vehicle 1 in steering and maintaining the position of the vehicle1 on the desired roadway mark path 470. The display 32 preferablyillustrates the actual mark path of the vehicle 1 as computed by thepreviously sampled mark path, and therefore a conventional guide wheeland guide wheel support bracket or other assistive pointer devices arenot required. The visual indication of the position of the vehicle 1with respect to the roadway mark path can also assist the driver of asnow plow to maintain the proper position on the roadway.

During the sampling process for determining the geographical location ofthe roadway mark path 470, the apparatus also automatically determinesthe type and dimensional characteristics (for example the length andwidth and, if appropriate, the spacing distance between marks) of theroadway mark. For example, the mark may be a dashed sequence or may be asolid line. If the mark is a dashed line, the apparatus is capable ofdetermining the spacing between the dashes. Thus, the apparatus of thepresent invention automatically determines existing roadway markcharacteristics.

The material spray dispensing rate is responsive to vehicle speed. Thisfeature of the apparatus is important toward depositing a consistent anduniform amount of paint onto the road 2. If the dispensing rate is heldconstant, a different amount of paint could be deposited onto the road 2depending upon the speed of the vehicle 1. For example, a slow movingvehicle 1 would deposit a greater amount of paint than a faster movingvehicle 1 with a constant dispensing rate.

Like known devices, the apparatus of the present invention uses apredetermined path, map, or image for the paint dispenser of vehicle 1to follow. A significant difference between the apparatus and knowndevices, however, is how the predetermined path is obtained. Theapparatus creates a digital image of the surface before painting ormarking the surface. A crude image is scanned (the image is mapped) andthen an enhanced version is reprinted over the original crude image. Theapparatus also mathematically models the predetermined path usingsampled geographical data of the original mark path. The sampled dataare obtained using a GPS.

The apparatus also uses any conventional paint (or other material) toplace (paint or deposit or apply) the marking on the road 2. Thematerial need not be modified. Some conventional devices modify themarker material in order to function. For example, U.S. Pat. No.4,219,092 discloses using a radioactive paint as the marker material.The radioactive emission of the paint is then differentially detected bythe vehicle and used to guide the vehicle along the predetermined path.It is an advantage of the apparatus according to the present invention,of course, that the material need not be modified.

Other conventional devices convert a drawing pattern produced from anapplication drawing program into a geographically defined image insuitable form for being deposited onto a surface using GPS technology.Still other conventional devices use a drawing tool to draw polygons todefine geographical areas of interest for farming or other applications.The apparatus according to the present invention does not require adrawing pattern, and in fact can create the actual mark path for otherpurposes.

One of those other purposes is the creation of another parallel pathwhich is derived from the original continuous mark path. The apparatuscalculates a parallel path displaced from the calculated continuous markpath which was derived from the sampled original roadway mark. Forexample, having the calculated continuous mark path such as the centerline of a roadway, a positional offset can be used to calculate anothermark path which parallels the center line. This second mark path couldbe the roadway side mark line. An advantage of the apparatus is thatonly one roadway mark is required.

Potential applications for the apparatus and method of the presentinvention are many and varied. The primary application is, of course,re-painting of demarcation line marks on roads. Related applicationsinclude the deposition of replacement marks on highways, parking lots,air landing fields, pathways, or walkway structures designed forvehicular, foot, or other traffic. In addition to marking pavement, theapparatus and method can re-mark a playing field for a sport such asfootball.

The apparatus and method can also be applied to assist snow plows,specifically by providing a snow plow truck guidance system. Such asystem can guide a vehicle 1 having a snow plow along a roadway. TheGPS-based locator samples discrete geographical location data of apre-existing roadway mark. The computer determines a continuous smoothgeographical location function fitted to the sampled geographicallocation data. An actuator responsive to the GPS-based locator andgeographical location function then positions the snow plow.

Another application for the apparatus and method is re-applying orre-depositing a demarcation line mark as a coating on a surface. Thecoating may be hard or soft, permanent or transitory. The mark may beformed by causing a coating material to extend, impregnate, or penetrateinto the surface material; the term “coating” is used in the generalsense to include both surface coating and impregnation. Preparatorytreatments of the surface material, subsequent treatments of the coatedsurface material, and other ancillary non-coating operations are alsoenvisioned. Such operations include processes like etching to make thesurface more compatible with, or adherent to, the coating. The coatingcan form lines, stripes, or indicative markings and can contain materialparticularly adapted to reflect light.

Roadway Mark Locator and Inspection Apparatus

According to another embodiment of the invention, an apparatus fordetermining the geographical location of a roadway mark 20, 25, 30 froma moving vehicle 1 may include at least one vehicle mounted imager 50,60 responsive to a trigger signal for imaging at least one roadway marklocated substantially parallel to the direction of travel of the vehicle1; GPS antenna 510; a GPS receiver 22 responsive to the GPS antenna 510for determining the geographical location of the GPS antenna 15; anapparatus for providing a GPS receiver synchronized image trigger signalto the imager 50, 60; and an apparatus for determining the GPSgeographical location of the roadway mark 20, 25, 30 from the triggeredroadway mark image and the geographical location of the GPS antenna 510.

FIG. 6 illustrates a top view of a moving vehicle 1 travelling along thex-axis defined by Cartesian coordinate system 16 and within a demarcatedtraffic lane 11 a of roadway 2. Roadway 2 has a paved top surface 17.Traffic lane 11 a is demarcated with pre-existing roadway dashed centermark 30 and pre-existing roadway edge mark 25. In addition, a trafficlane 11 b is demarcated also by the dashed center mark 30 and roadwayedge mark 20. Mark 30 and marks 20 and 25 are located on top surface 17of roadway 2 and are usually composed of epoxy, paint (with or withoutreflective glass beads), thermoplastic markings, or other materialscommonly used in the roadway marking industry. Marks 30 and 25 arevisible from the moving vehicle 1. A left side panel 12 (conventionallyreferred to as the driver's side for American-built vehicles) of vehicle1 faces mark 30 and a right side panel 14 (conventionally referred to asthe passenger's side for American-built vehicles) of vehicle 1 facesedge mark 25.

Referring now to FIGS. 6 and 7, vehicle 1 has a fixed GPS antenna 510supported above the roof 19 of vehicle 1 by a support 40. The firstimager 50 is mounted on the left side of vehicle 1 and is adjustablypositioned to image an area 55 of the roadway top surface 17 to the leftof the direction of travel of vehicle 1 which includes a section 30 a ofmark 30. The second side mounted imager 60 is adjustably positioned ontothe right side of vehicle 1 to image an area 65 of roadway top surface17 which includes a section 25 a of edge mark 25. Further, it isunderstood that imagers 50 and 60 could be mounted in any suitablelocation (e.g., on roof 19 of vehicle 1 in close proximity to the leftand right sides of vehicle 1 and similarly positioned to image areas 55and 65, respectively). The GPS receiver 22 is electrically connected toGPS antenna 510 and is contained within vehicle 1 (GPS receiver 22 isnot explicitly shown in FIG. 6 or 7).

The description above refers to the standard direction for vehiculartraffic defined for United States roadways. The preferred embodimentalso applies to roadways 2 having the direction of vehicle trafficdefined opposite that of the United States such as that found in Europe.In this case, second imager 60 would image center mark 30 and imager 50would image edge mark 20. Further, lane 11 b could carry traffic in theopposite direction of vehicle 1, or could be a second lane of amulti-lane highway carrying additional traffic in the same direction asvehicle 1.

Referring now to FIG. 8, a partially cut away side view of imager 50 isshown imaging roadway top surface 17. The adjustable mounting systemaffixing first imager 50 to vehicle 1 is not shown in FIG. 8 but isfurther discussed in reference to FIG. 9. The following discussionspecifically refers to first imager 50; it should be understood,however, that the discussion also pertains to second imager 60.

Mounted within first imager 50 is an imaging sensor 70. The center ofimaging sensor 70 is vertically displaced from roadway top surface 17 bya vector 73 which is normal to roadway top surface 17 and a distance 74from mark edge 30 b. Imaging sensor 70 is preferably a conventionalcharge-coupled device (CCD) or may be an active pixel complementarymetal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) sensor, having a square or rectangulararray of sensor pixels (not shown). A CCD is a device for the movementof electrical charge, usually from within the device to an area wherethe charge can be manipulated, for example conversion into a digitalvalue. This movement is achieved by “shifting” the signals betweenstages within the device one at a time. CCDs move charge betweencapacitive bins in the device, with the shift allowing for the transferof charge between bins.

Affixed to first imager 50 is an electronically adjustable optical lenselement 75 having an optical axis 77 and an electronically adjustableaperture 76 (see FIG. 11). Further affixed to lens element 75 is anoptical filter 78. An angle 93 defines the acute angle between normalvector 73 and optical axis 77. Preferably, the center of sensor element70 coincides with optical axis 77. Likewise, affixed to second imager 60are an electronically adjustable optical lens element 95 (see FIG. 11),an electronically adjustable aperture 96 (see FIG. 11), and an opticalfilter 97 (not shown but corresponding to the optical filter 78 affixedto first imager 50).

Data and control signals are able to communicate with first imager 50,lens element 75, and adjustable aperture 76 via a flexible cable 90.Cable 90 also includes power cables to supply the necessary electricalpower to first imager 50 and electronically adjustable lens element 75and aperture 76.

Lens element 75 and aperture 76 define an angular field of view 85 offirst imager 50 and focus objects within angular field of view 85 ontoimaging sensor 70. Angular field of view 85 preferably includes section30 a of roadway mark 30 including mark edges 30 b and 30 c. Likewise,lens element 95 and aperture 96 define the angular field of view ofsecond imager 60 and focus objects within this angular field of viewonto the imaging sensor of second imager 60.

It is noted that roadway mark 30 shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 is a dashedline. Roadway mark 30 could be a solid line, a double solid line, or anymark type currently used on roadways. Likewise, edge marks 20 or 25could be any mark type currently used on roadways.

Also shown in FIG. 8 is conventional floodlight 51. Floodlight 51 ispositioned above first imager 50 and is affixed to left side panel 12 bya conventional mechanism. Floodlight 51 illuminates image area 55 in lowambient light conditions (such as at dusk or night time) so that firstimager 50 can distinctly image roadway mark section 30 a including edges30 b and 30 c.

Another floodlight 61 (see FIG. 11) may be positioned above secondimager 60 and affixed to right side panel 14. Floodlight 61correspondingly illuminates area 65 in low ambient light conditions(such as at dusk or night time). Power to both floodlights 51 and 61 maybe provided via power cables 51 a and 61 a (power cable 61 a is notshown), and the on/off state for each floodlight 51, 61 is electricallycontrolled by conventional mechanisms. When floodlights 51 and 61 areturned on, image areas 55 and 65 are respectively illuminated.

Also shown in FIG. 8 is a retroreflectometer 81. Retroreflectometer 81is a device capable of measuring the retroreflectivity of materials, forexample, by measuring retroreflected light and retroreflective surfaces.Retroreflectivity is an optical phenomenon, well known to one ofordinary skill in the art, in which reflected rays of light are returnedin directions close to the opposite of the direction from which thelight originated. Retroreflectometer 81 may be positioned below firstimager 50 and affixed to left side panel 12 by conventional mechanisms.Retroreflectometer 81 measures the retroreflection of roadway marksection 30 a and is calibrated to yield accurate and equivalent 30-metergeometry, or any other applicable industry standard, retroreflectionmeasurements. Another retroreflectometer 91 (see FIG. 11) may bepositioned below second imager 60 and affixed to the right side panel 14by conventional mechanisms. Retroreflectometer 91 provides calibratedretroreflection measurements of roadway mark section 25 a, for example.

Data and control signals communicate with retroreflectometer 81 viaflexible cable 88. Cable 88 also includes power cables to supply thenecessary electrical power to retroreflectometer 81. A similar cable 98(not shown) provides data and control signal communication andelectrical power to retroreflectometer 91.

The relative position of imaging sensor 70 with respect to GPS antenna510 is assumed known by conventional mechanisms (e.g., vectorial offsetsare determined by conventional mechanisms). Therefore, the GPS positionof imaging sensor 70 may be determined by one of ordinary skill in theart. In addition, the relative position of the imaging sensor withinsecond imager 60 with respect to GPS antenna 510 is assumed known byconventional mechanisms, and likewise therefore, the GPS position of theimaging sensor within second imager 60 is known.

Imagers 50 and 60 are calibrated so that the relative location of anactual object within the angular field of view 85 on roadway top surface17 can be determined with respect to imaging sensor 70. For example, therelative location of edge 30 b of roadway mark 30 with respect toimaging sensor 70 can be determined. Dimensions of an actual object fromits image can also be determined. Conventional camera calibrationtechniques are known in the art for calibrating imagers to yieldaccurate object dimensions, locations, and distances of objects to imagesensors from images using conventional coordinate transformationalgorithms.

Therefore, knowing the relative location of the object (e.g., mark 30)with respect to imaging sensor 70, and the relative location of imagingsensor 70 with respect to the GPS location of GPS antenna 510, allowsfor the determination of the absolute GPS geographical position of animaged object (or parts thereof) on roadway top surface 17, such as aroadway mark. Further, the length and width dimensions of the actualobject imaged onto imaging sensor 17 can also be determined, such as thelength and width dimensions of section 30 a of roadway mark 30. It istherefore understood that every image pixel has an associated absoluteGPS geographical position. For example, all four corners of the image ofarea 55 have an associated absolute GPS geographical position whichcorresponds to the actual corners of area 55.

The instant GPS location of any object within the angular field of view85 of a calibrated first imager 50 is determined assuming that the GPSlocation data are instantly available when the image from calibratedfirst imager 50 is acquired. The GPS location of any object within thefield of view of a calibrated second imager 60 is also instantlydetermined in a similar fashion. If the GPS location data are notinstantly known when the images from imagers 50 and 60 are acquiredbecause of GPS receiver latency or for other reasons, positionalinterpolation based upon the known time the images were captured isrequired.

Referring now to FIGS. 9 a and 9 b, first imager 50 may be mounted tovehicle left side panel 12 with an adjustable angular mount 100. Angularmount 100 includes cylindrically shaped rotatable mounting plate 110having fixed imager support brackets 120 a and 120 b. Brackets 120 a and120 b extend outwardly from the surface of rotatable mounting plate 110,and are affixed to rotatable mounting plate 110 using conventionalattachment mechanisms such as screws, or they may be welded into place(not shown).

Rotatable mounting plate 110 additionally has through slots 125 a and125 b formed to accept shoulder screws 130 a and 130 b. First imager 50is positioned between brackets 120 a and 120 b and is held in place withconventional rotatable mounts 140 a and 140 b, such that first imager 50is rotatable around an axis 150 as indicated by rotational arrows 155.First imager 50 is affixed to rotatable mounts 140 a and 140 b usingconventional attachment mechanisms such as screws (not shown).

Rotatable mounting plate 110 is axially aligned with, and rotatablymounted to, a cylindrically shaped support plate 160. Rotatable mountingplate 110 is affixed to support plate 160 with shoulder screws 130 a and130 b. Loosening screws 130 a and 130 b allows rotatable mounting plate110 to rotate around an axis 203 as indicated by rotational arrows 165.Tightening screws 130 a and 130 b affixes rotatable mounting plate 110to support plate 160 and prevents rotation of rotatable mounting plate110 with respect to support plate 160.

Support plate 160 has further affixed on its surface facing vehicle leftside panel 12 two conventional bearings 170 a and 170 b. Bearings 170 aand 170 b are aligned along an axis 175 and are affixed to support plate160 using conventional mechanisms such as screws (not shown). Bearings170 a and 170 b also have through set screws 201 a and 201 b.

Affixed to vehicle side panel 12 are two conventional shaft supportbrackets 180 a and 180 b. Conventional machine screws 185 a, 187 a, 185b, and 187 b and respective nuts 189 a, 189 b, 189 c (not shown), and189 d (not shown) are used to affix shaft support brackets 180 a and 180b to vehicle side panel 12.

Support brackets 180 a and 180 b, and bearings 170 a and 170 b, are allaligned along axis 175. A shaft 190 (preferably stainless steel) isinserted through bearings 170 a and 170 b, and support brackets 180 aand 180 b, and is affixed to shaft support brackets 180 a and 180 b byconventional clamps 195 and 197, respectively.

Washers 199 a and 199 b minimize the frictional contact between theupper outer face of bearing 170 a and the bottom outer face of supportbracket 180 a, and the bottom outer face of bearing 170 b and the upperouter face of support bracket 180 b, respectively.

Support plate 160 is prevented from rotating around shaft 190 bytightening set screws 201 a and 201 b. Thus, support plate 160 is ableto fixedly rotate about axis 175 as indicated by rotational arrow 200.

Adjustable angular mount 100 provides for three adjustable orthogonalrotations for first imager 50 around axes 150, 175, and 203. Firstimager 50 can therefore be mounted on a contoured side panel 12 andsubsequently aligned to image area 55 and then secured in this alignedposition. In addition, adjustable angular mount 100 can be motorized andelectronically controlled using a conventional motorized camera mountand externally controlled via a computer and joystick.

It is further understood that other equipment could be used to affixshaft support brackets 180 a and 180 b to vehicle side panel 12. Forexample, machine screws 185 a, 187 a, 185 b, and 187 b along withrespective nuts 189 a, 189 b, 189 c, and 189 d could be replaced withother types of attachments for securing shaft support brackets 180 a and180 b, and hence adjustable angular mount 100, to left side panel 12 ofvehicle 1.

Still referring to FIG. 9 c, adjustable angular mount 100 may also beaffixed to vehicle 1 (e.g., to the left side of roof 19 of vehicle 1)using a conventional L-shaped bracket 217. A leg 217 a of bracket 217 isattached to roof 19 by a conventional mechanism (for example, by screwsor welded into place, not shown). Leg 217 a extends beyond a roof line218 of vehicle 1. A leg 217 b of bracket 217 is vertically positionedand provides an outside surface 217 c for affixing shaft supportbrackets 180 a and 180 b, using conventional attachment mechanisms.

Referring now to FIG. 10, an example of another mechanism for attachingadjustable angular mount 100 to left side panel 12 is shown. Themechanism includes a conventional releasable magnetic clamp 210 affixedto shaft support bracket 180 a. A turning switch 220 directs themagnetic field of magnetic clamp 210 to forcibly attract magnetic clamp210 to the ferromagnetic metallic vehicle left side panel 12. If theside panel 12 of vehicle 1 is constructed of non-ferromagnetic material,a ferromagnetic strip 215 placed on the inside surface of side panel 12and oppositely aligned with magnetic clamp 210 is used in combinationwith the magnetic field of magnetic clamp 210 to affix support bracket180 a. Another magnetic clamp 216 (not shown) is similarly affixed toshaft support bracket 180 b. In addition, ferromagnetic strip 215 couldalso be placed behind window glass of vehicle 1 allowing magnetic clamp210 to fix adjustable angular mount 100 to the glass surface.

Suction cups could also be used in place of releasable magnetic clamps210, 216, and are especially advantageous for affixing adjustableangular mount 100 to side window glass. Also, a combination of onemagnetic clamp (for affixing to a metallic side of vehicle 1) and onesuction cup (for affixing to glass) could be used to affix adjustableangular mount 100. Suction cups could also be used to affix adjustableangular mount 100 on smooth surfaces. A combination of ferromagneticmaterial and magnetic clamp 210 along with suction cups could also beused to affix adjustable angular mount 100 to side panel 12. It is notedthat bracket 217 may also be affixed to roof 19 using one or moremagnetic clamps similar in construction to clamp 210, or one or moresuction cups, or a combination thereof, in place of the conventionalattachment mechanisms.

It is also understood second imager 60 is affixed to right side panel 14or on the right side of roof 19 of vehicle 1 using similarly constructedmounts (not shown).

Referring now to FIG. 11, a schematic block diagram 500 of a preferredembodiment is shown. The embodiment includes a number of components andsystems: GPS antenna 510, GPS receiver 22, programmable synchronizationcircuit 530, first imager 50, lens element 75, aperture 76, floodlight51, second imager 60, lens element 95, aperture 96, floodlight 61, abi-directional communication bus 540, a display 550, a keyboard 560, ajoystick 570, a computer 580, a vehicle speed detector 545,retroreflectometers 81 and 91, and a power supply 590 (e.g., batteryoperated).

GPS receiver 22, synchronization circuit 530, imagers 50 and 60, lenselements 75 and 95, apertures 76 and 96, speed detector 545, floodlights51 and 61, retroreflectometers 81 and 91, and computer 580 areelectrically interconnected, and in communication with each other, forexample, via bi-directional bus 540.

Computer 580 is a conventional computer having an image acquisitionsystem 582 for controlling and triggering imagers 50 and 60, and areal-time clock for calculating accurate time intervals (not shown).

In addition, keyboard 560 connects to computer 580 via a dedicatedbi-directional connection 561 and provides a way for a user to inputdata into computer 580. Display 550 connects to computer 580 viadedicated bi-directional bus 551 and provides the user with avisualization of mark images generated by computer 580 and visuallydisplays other information to the user. Joystick 570 connects tocomputer 580 via a wired connection 571 and is used to control amotorized adjustable angular mount 100.

Display 550, keyboard 560, and joystick 570 are conventional computerperipherals. A conventional mouse is also connected to computer 580 viaa cable (not shown). Keyboard 560, display 550, joystick 570, and themouse could also communicate with computer 580 via a wireless connectionor a combination of cable and wireless connections, or connect directlyto bus 540 for communicating with computer 580.

GPS antenna 510 receives GPS radio waves or signals 505 which originatefrom a remote GPS satellite system and/or a GPS-pseudolite array. GPSantenna 510 is conductively connected to the input of GPS receiver 22.Radio waves 505 could also include real time kinematic (RTK) serviceprovider signals (not shown). RTK satellite navigation is a techniqueused to enhance the precision of position data derived fromsatellite-based positioning systems. The technique can be used inconjunction with GPS, GLONASS, and/or Galileo. It uses measurements ofthe phase of the signal's carrier wave, rather than the informationcontent of the signal, and relies on a single reference station toprovide real-time corrections, providing up to centimeter-levelaccuracy. With reference to GPS in particular, the system is commonlyreferred to as Carrier-Phase Enhancement, or CPGPS.

GPS receiver 22 determines the time and geographical location 507 ofantenna 510 at a periodic rate programmed by computer 580, or receiver22 can be polled by computer 580 for positional and time information.Positional and time information from GPS receiver 22 is placed onto bus540.

Referring to FIG. 12, GPS receiver 22 also outputs a periodic pulsesignal 600 onto line 594 which flows to an input connection ofsynchronization circuit 530. The time of occurrence of periodic pulsesignal 600 is accurately known. For example, the Trimble GPS receivermodel number BD982 provides a one pulse per second (1 pps) signal 600with a corresponding ASCII formatted Universal Time Coordinated (UTC)time tag (i.e., the exact time of pulse occurrence).

Referring to FIG. 13, synchronization circuit 530 comprises aconventional phase lock loop circuit (having a phase detector 650, a lowpass filter 655, and a voltage controlled oscillator 660) and aprogrammable divider circuit 665 inserted into the phase lock loopfeedback path 667.

Programmable divider 665 is programmed to divide the period of signal600 placed onto line 594 by an integer number represented by a binarydigital signal 670 input from bus 540. Signal 670 is placed onto bus 540by computer 580. The output signal from the voltage controlledoscillator 660 is placed onto a line 596 which then flows via bus 540 tothe trigger input of image acquisition system 582 contained withincomputer 580.

For example and referring now to FIG. 14, an eight-bit programmabledivider (divide by N counter) 665 programmed with binary digital signal“00000010” (which represents a divider integer value of 2) causesprogrammable divider 665 to divide the period of signal 600 by 2. Thisproduces a periodic signal 610 which is twice the frequency of signal600. For example, for a one pulse per second signal 600 and a divide by2 integer value programmed into programmable divider 665 a periodicsignal 610 is produced having a frequency of 2 pulses per second (periodequals 0.5 seconds) which will be output from voltage controlledoscillator 660 and placed onto line 596.

The phase lock loop also maintains excellent frequency tracking tostrobe periodic pulse signal 600. Thus knowing the time of occurrence ofsignal 600 and the divider integer defines the exact time of when therising edge 615 of periodic pulse signal 610 occurs. Thus,synchronization circuit 530 can be programmed via computer 580 forproducing periodic signals 610 having an equal or higher frequency as,and synchronized with, signal 600.

An example of a phase lock loop is a 74HC4046 integrated circuit. Thephase lock loop function can also be implemented in software, or acombination of software and hardware.

In response to trigger signal 610, image acquisition system 582simultaneously triggers imagers 50 and 60 to capture images of areas 55and 65, respectively. Captured images of areas 55 and 65 are thensubsequently stored in a computer data memory 720 (see FIG. 15). Asdiscussed below, along with each captured image are an image indexnumber, time, and an interpolated GPS geographical position. It isassumed that the imagers 50 and 60 are triggered on the rising edge 615of signal 610, although imagers 50 and 60 could also be triggered on thefalling edge 620 of signal 610.

Triggering imagers 50 and 60 at an equal or higher frequency than thefrequency of signal 600 provides for one or multiple images 55 and 65 ofroadway surfaces for every pulse 600. As an example, having computer 580program divider circuit 665 with an equivalent integer value of 2results in synchronization circuit 530 producing a triggering signal 610which is twice the frequency of signal 600 as shown in FIG. 14.

Speed detector 545 determines the speed of vehicle 1 which may bedetermined by conventional mechanisms such as an electronic speedometer.The speed of vehicle 1 may also be determined by computer 580 from theknown distance travelled using GPS coordinates and the time it takes forvehicle 1 to travel the known distance.

Battery operated power supply 590 provides electrical power to all blockdiagram 500 components via a power bus 592 and is preferably operatedfrom an internal battery (not shown) of the vehicle 1. Power supply 590may provide both AC and DC power.

Referring now to FIG. 15, computer 580 further includes a computeroperating system software 700, program memory 710, and data memory 720.Operating software 700 is a conventional operating system (OS) such asWindows 7 manufactured by Microsoft, a Unix-based OS, or an AppleComputer OS system. Data memory 720 is a conventional computerread-write memory. For example, data memory 720 could include separatelyor in combination conventional solid state drive(s), high-speed harddisk drive(s), and/or random access memory (RAM). Program memory 710comprises a synchronization and positional interpolation program 730, amachine vision program 740, an inspection program 750, a samplingprogram 760, a curve fitting program 770, and a curve offsetting program780.

Synchronization and positional interpolation program 730 corrects fortime latency in GPS receiver 22 (discussed below and with reference toFIG. 16) and therefore determines the accurate GPS geographical positionfor each captured image. In addition, synchronization and positionalinterpolation program 730 determines the GPS derived time-tag andprovides a sequential image index number for each captured image. Thesedata are then stored into data memory 720.

Referring now to FIG. 16, periodic pulse signal 600 along withsynchronized periodic signal 610 is shown. The rising edges (first tworising edges 615 a and 615 b are shown) of synchronized periodic signal610 (the first two pulses are indicated as 610 a and 610 b) are used totrigger image acquisition system 582 thereby acquiring images of areas55 and 65 from imagers 50 and 60, respectively. At instant time t1 GPSreceiver 22 acquires GPS geographical positional and GPS time data.These data are available during time interval Δt1 after the positionaland time data are acquired at instant time t1. Instant time t1 couldoccur at the rising edge 602 of periodic pulse signal 600 and wouldtherefore be synchronized to periodic pulse signal 600, or it could bedelayed by time interval tx from rising edge 602 of periodic pulsesignal 600. The time interval Δt1 is defined as the time latency whichoccurs because GPS receiver 22 needs calculation time to compute the GPStime and GPS geographical location values from satellite signals 505, orfor other reasons.

Likewise, at instant time t2 GPS receiver 22 acquires GPS geographicalpositional and GPS time data. Instant time t2 could be delayed by timeinterval ty from rising edge 615 b of trigger signal pulses 610 b. Thetime interval Δt2 is defined as the time latency associated with instanttime t2. These data are available during time interval Δt2 after thepositional and time data are acquired at instant time t2. Instant timet2 could occur at a preset time interval after t1, or instant times t2and t1 could occur periodically. In either case, there is a possibilitythat image trigger signal pulses 610 a and 610 b are not synchronizedwith instant time t1 or instant time t2, and therefore the exact GPSgeographical position of the image is not known within a high degree ofpositional accuracy.

Accurate GPS coordinates for the images of areas 55 and 65 from imagers50 and 60, respectively, are determined at rising edge 615 b by firstdetermining the time interval (t2−t1) and the GPS geographicalpositional difference (or equivalent positional differences in ENUcoordinates). Knowing the UTC time-tag of rising edge 615 b of pulse 610b yields the time interval tz. Knowing tz and the time interval (t2−t1),a simple linear interpolation is used to determine the geographicalposition of the images which are triggered by rising edge 615 b.

The GPS location of images triggered by rising edge 615 b equals thetime interval tz divided by the time interval (t2−t1) times thegeographical positional difference corresponding to times t2 and t1,plus the geographical position at t1. This process is repeated forsubsequent images.

Referring to FIG. 17, each triggered image from imagers 50 and 60therefore has a data block 900. Data block 900 includes an associatedimage index number 901 sequentially identifying the captured images, theactual captured image data 902 of the roadway area (which may or may notinclude a roadway mark), a GPS derived time-tag 903 (i.e., the time theimages were acquired), and an associated accurate GPS geographicallocation 904—all of which are stored in data memory 720 bysynchronization and positional interpolation program 730. Data block 900is then passed to machine vision program 740 as indicated by arrow 950.

Machine vision program 740 includes a number of machine visionalgorithms which are selected by the user-defined calculations input 910to perform desired calculations on image data 902. The calculations mayinclude, for example, edge detection, geometric computations anddistance computations of imaged objects, and other generic machinevision calculations. For example, machine vision program 740 includesalgorithms which the user selects by user-defined calculations input 910to determine the roadway mark edges within the field of view of imagers50 and 60 (for example edges 30 b and 30 c); the actual width and lengthdimensions and the absolute GPS location of the roadway mark from theroadway mark image; and other roadway mark characteristics such as thearea of the roadway mark.

Machine vision program 740 also includes algorithms which the user mayselect using user-defined calculations input 910 to determine, using thegrayscale values of the acquired images, the reflectivity of the roadwaymark, the reflectivity of the surrounding roadway surface, and therelative difference between the reflectivity of the roadway mark andreflectivity of the surrounding roadway surface. Grayscale images mayinclude images where the value of each pixel is a single value whichwill ultimately be interpreted by some rendering platform as values(such as intensities) to be displayed (or analyzed). Displayed images ofthis sort are typically composed of shades of gray (hence the moniker“grayscale”) although any color (or, indeed, different colors) can servein this regard. For any particular grayscale standard, there is a givenavailable range of grayscale level values. For example, a givengrayscale standard might represent a range of black at the weakestintensity to white at the strongest intensity. Thus, for example, animage of section 30 a of roadway mark 30 may have a value of 220 (very“white”) based upon a grayscale value of 0-255 (assuming an 8-bitintensity quantization), while the surrounding roadway surface (such asasphalt-macadam) may have a value of 20 (very “black”), yielding agrayscale contrast difference of 200 between roadway mark section 30 aand the surrounding roadway surface.

Machine vision program 740 also includes algorithms to compare thegrayscale values of the images of the roadway and roadway mark with apredetermined threshold value. If the grayscale values are below thispredetermined threshold value, machine vision program 740 turns onfloodlights 51 and 61 to better image the roadway and roadway marksunder low ambient light conditions.

Other roadway mark characteristics include the reflectivity of theroadway mark 20, 25, 30, the reflectivity of the surrounding roadway topsurface 17, and the relative difference between the reflectivity of theroadway mark 20, 25, 30 and the reflectivity of the surrounding roadwaytop surface 17. As used in this document, “reflectivity” may refer tothe fraction of incident light that is reflected by the surface (e.g.,the roadway mark 20, 25, 30 or the roadway top surface 17).

Machine vision program 740 further includes algorithms which may also beselected by user-defined calculations input 910 to determine the area“fill percentage” using the grayscale values of the roadway mark. Forexample, the “fill percentage” may be defined as:

$\frac{{{Total}\mspace{14mu}{area}\mspace{14mu}{of}\mspace{14mu}{roadway}\mspace{14mu}{mark}} - {{missing}\mspace{14mu}{area}}}{{Total}\mspace{14mu}{area}\mspace{14mu}{of}\mspace{14mu}{roadway}\mspace{14mu}{mark}}$In other words, the fill percentage may be based on the relationshipbetween the portion of the mark 20, 25, 30 that is not filled (e.g.,without paint) as compared to the total area of the mark 20, 25, 30 thatshould be completely filled (e.g., defined by the outer perimeter of theintended or original mark 20, 25, 30).

For example, FIG. 18 a illustrates an image 56 of area 55 having animaged roadway mark segment 800 having an imaged roadway mark area fillpercentage of 100%. FIG. 18 b illustrates an image 56 of area 55 havingan imaged roadway mark segment 810 with partially worn-away portions 820and having an imaged roadway mark area fill percentage of less than100%.

Machine vision program 740 additionally includes algorithms to definethe equivalent absolute GPS coordinates of the corners of the image (andhence the absolute GPS coordinates of the corners of area 55). Forexample, in FIG. 18 a the absolute GPS coordinates of the upper lefthand corner of image 56 is determined and an image corner referencedcoordinate system 56 a having image axes u-v can be defined.

Machine vision program 740 additionally includes algorithms which mayalso be selected by user-defined calculations input 910 to compute thelateral distances (i.e., in the y direction of coordinate system 16)between roadway marks and can determine, for example, the width of lane11 a and/or the lateral spacing between double roadway marks, or thewidths of the roadway marks. Machine vision program 740 may also beprogrammed by user calculations input 910 to input retroreflection datafrom retroreflectors 81 and 91.

Machine vision program 740 subsequently expands the original data block900 to now include the desired user-defined calculations 910 in additionto the original data contained within data block 900. For example, datablock 900 is now expanded to include roadway mark dimensions 905 (forexample, roadway mark width and length), area fill percentage 906, andgrayscale reflectivity values 907, all of which are now grouped within adata block 930 and subsequently stored in data memory 720. Ifretroreflection data are required, data block 930 is further expanded toinclude retroreflection data. Other data may be included in data block930, such as lane width etc. Data block 930 and user definedcalculations 910 can be further stored in memory 720.

Referring to FIG. 19, machine vision program 740 also combines thecaptured images from imagers 50 and 60 and outputs merged image 990 todisplay 550 via computer 580 using the absolute GPS coordinates of theroadway marks and the location of GPS antenna 510 with respect to thecenter of vehicle 1. Positional offsets between GPS antenna 510 andimagers 50 and 60 have been previously determined by conventionalmechanisms.

The merged image 990 consists, for example, of roadway mark 30 imagedsection 30 a and roadway mark 25 imaged section 25 a with vehicle 1being represented as a triangle 980 having a tip 985 indicating thedirection of travel of vehicle 1. As vehicle 1 moves laterally betweensections 30 a and 25 a, triangle 980 likewise laterally moves betweenimaged sections 30 a and 25 a. Merged image 990 correctly represents thelateral distance between sections 30 a and 25 a with respect to thelateral location of vehicle 1.

Data block 930 is then passed to inspection program 750 as indicated byan arrow 960.

Inspection program 750 inputs both data block 930 and user-definedroadway mark standards data 920, and further performs a comparisonbetween the data stored in data block 930 and roadway mark standardsdata 920. Any roadway mark which does not meet the defined roadway markstandards data 920 is flagged with a code and stored in error flagssection 908 of a data block 940.

For example, data block 940 is shown as the output of inspection program750 having the image index number 901 a as number “33.” Appended to datablock 930 is error flags section 908. Stored within error flags section908 is the error flag “06,” which indicates that the roadway markderived from image 33 did not meet, for example, the roadway mark widthstandard. All data which fail the comparison between the data stored indata block 930 and the roadway mark standards data 920 are stored indata memory 720 as indicated by an arrow 970 for later analysis andremedial work.

Sampling program 760 receives a GPS reference location from GPS receiver22 and constructs an orthogonal Cartesian (or other conventional)coordinate system (grid system) having the origin defined at thereference location. For example, Cartesian coordinate system 16 could bea conventional ENU coordinate system. Sampling program 760 samples thegeographical location of the pre-existing roadway mark based upon eithera distance or time sampling interval. The distance sampling interval canbe determined by computer 580 from the GPS coordinates of GPS antenna510 computed by GPS receiver 22 or by other mechanisms described in thisdocument or known in the art. The time sampling interval can bedetermined either from the internal time base of computer 580 or fromGPS time computed by GPS receiver 22, or other time bases.

Curve fitting program 770 inputs discrete GPS coordinate data previouslystored in data memory 720 and determines a first continuous mathematicalfunction which best fits the discrete GPS coordinate data. Curveoffsetting program 780 inputs the continuous function determined bycurve fitting program 770 and generates a second continuous functionsimilar and parallel to the first function but offset from the firstfunction by a given distance. For example, the first function mayrepresent the roadway mark 30 on roadway 2. A second function defining aline for roadway edge mark 25 may be derived from the first function byoffsetting the first function by a distance, or the first function mayrepresent a roadway edge mark 20 and the roadway mark 30 may be derivedfrom the first function by offsetting the first function by a distance.

In operation, the operator of vehicle 1 inputs the desired user-definedcalculations 910 using keyboard 560 and begins to travel on roadway 2maintaining vehicle 1 within lane 11 a defined by roadway demarcationmarks, for example, center mark 30 and roadway side mark 25. It isassumed at this point that power supply 590 is turned on and supplyingpower via bus 592 to the respective components discussed above. Withpower applied via bus 592, all components begin operating. In responseto supplied power, GPS receiver 22 begins to input signals 505 from GPSantenna 510 and starts to calculate GPS geographical location 507 andtime-tag information. GPS receiver 22 also generates periodic pulsesignal 600 which flows onto line 594 to synchronization circuit 530.

At a chosen position for beginning to inspect the left and/or right sideroadway marks and/or determine the geographical location of thepre-existing roadway marks, the user depresses a “Start” key on keyboard560 which communicates this key selection to computer 580 via connection561. Computer 580 then inputs speed data of vehicle 1 from speeddetector 545 (or alternatively uses the differences in vehicle GPSposition and time data from GPS receiver 22 to compute vehicle speed).

In response to the speed of vehicle 1, computer 580 programsprogrammable divider circuit 665 of synchronization circuit 530 viasignals 670 placed onto bus 540. In response to programmed dividercircuit 665, synchronization circuit 530 outputs periodic signal 610onto line 596 which flows via bus 540 to image acquisition system 582contained within computer 580. In response to periodic signal 610, imageacquisition system 582 triggers imagers 50 and 60 to capture roadwaymark areas 55 and 65, respectively.

In response to the speed of vehicle 1, programmed divider circuit 665insures that the frequency of the trigger periodic signal 610 issufficient to trigger imagers 50 and 60 at a rate to acquire overlappingimages so that a continuous image of the roadway mark path is obtainedso that there are no missing sections of the roadway mark.

It is further noted that by having the frequency of image-triggeringperiodic signal 610 programmable and dependent upon the speed of vehicle1 insures that efficient use of data memory 720 occurs when storingimage data. For example, vehicle 1 may be stopped at a traffic light orexperience significant variations in vehicle speed as might occur instop-and-go traffic. Adjusting the frequency of image-triggeringperiodic signal 610 as a function of the speed of vehicle 1 insures thatat lower vehicle speeds fewer roadway images are taken while at highervehicle speeds many more roadway images are taken while stillmaintaining sufficient image overlap so that there are no missingsections of the roadway mark and the complete and entire roadway markand mark path has been imaged.

Synchronization and positional interpolation program 730 corrects thepositional data of each roadway image for GPS receiver 22 latency toinsure an accurate geographical position for each roadway image,sequentially numbers each captured image with image index number 901,and then stores index number 901, captured image data 902, time of imageacquisition 903, and corrected GPS geographical location 904 of theroadway mark as data block 900 into data memory 720.

Machine vision program 740 then inputs the images stored in data block900 format indicted by arrow 950, performs geometric calculations anddetermines the width and length of the roadway mark, grayscalereflectivity, fill percentages, and other roadway mark characteristicsas defined by user-defined calculations input 910. The original datastored in data block 900 for each image are now expanded to include markdimensions 905, area fill percentage 906, and grayscale reflectivityvalues 907 and any other user-defined calculations input 910 formingdata block 930. Data block 930 may also be stored in memory 720. Inaddition, machine vision program 740 displays merged image 990 which issubsequently viewed by the operator.

Inspection program 750 inputs data block 930 as indicated by arrow 960and also inputs user-defined roadway mark standards data 920. Inspectionprogram 750 then compares the data contained within data block 930 withthe corresponding data contained within roadway mark standards data 920.Any roadway mark not meeting the desired standards is flagged and savedto data memory 720 as indicated by arrow 970.

Sampling program 760 then samples the geographical position of theimaged roadway mark. Curve fitting program 770 inputs the sampled GPScoordinate data previously stored in data memory 720 and determines afirst continuous mathematical function which best fits the discrete GPScoordinate data. Curve offsetting program 780 inputs the continuousfunction determined by curve fitting program 770 and generates a secondcontinuous function similar and parallel to the first function butoffset from the first function by a given distance. For example, thefirst function may represent the roadway mark 30 on roadway 2. A secondfunction defining a line for roadway edge mark 25 may be derived fromthe first function by offsetting the first function by a distance, orthe first function may represent roadway edge mark 20 and roadway mark30 may be derived from the first function by offsetting the firstfunction by a distance.

The continuous function(s) determined by curve fitting program 770and/or curve offsetting program 780, along with roadway markcharacteristics, are then used by a GPS roadway marker as previouslydescribed to replicate the original roadway mark 20, 25, 30 onto therepaved roadway top surface 17.

Thus, the geographical position of roadway marks 20, 25, 30 which do notmeet the desired roadway mark standards can be identified and the GPSgeographical position known and later used for remedial work. Theroadway mark GPS geographical position can also be used to remark therepaved roadway top surface 17.

Acquisition and Remote Analysis

The apparatus and methods described in this document and the relatedco-pending applications can quickly accumulate large amounts of data. Inparticular, the amount of roadway image data created and the memoryrequired to store these data can be significant. Accordingly, thepresent invention also provides apparatus, systems, and methods suitablefor not only acquiring the data but also managing the data in aneffective and efficient way, for example, by filtering and compressingthe image data and utilizing a remote location for analyzing the data.

Co-pending application Ser. No. 13/351,829 describes an apparatus whichautomatically determines the GPS coordinates of pre-existing marks onroadway surfaces using machine vision and subsequently generates abest-fit continuous curve for defining the mark path. Then, after theroadway has been repaved and using the continuous mark path function,the apparatus re-creates the pre-existing roadway marks onto theresurfaced roadway.

Co-pending application Ser. No. 13/728,062 describes a GPS-based machinevision locator and inspection apparatus mounted on a moving vehicle forautomatically determining the GPS coordinates of pre-existing marks onroadway surfaces at highway speeds and generates a best-fit continuousgeographical location curve for the mark path. The roadway mark path isthen used by a roadway marker (commonly referred to as a painting orstriping truck) to re-create the previous roadway marks onto theresurfaced roadway. One of the primary advantages of this system is thespeed at which these tasks can be accomplished over current practices.

For example, current practices require a significant amount of manuallabor to re-create a roadway mark path onto the surface of a newlyrepaved roadway. This re-created mark path usually consists of manuallydetermining the center of a roadway and then applying small visiblemarks on the repaved roadway surface along the defined center mark path(this practice is commonly referred to as “laying out” the roadway).These visual marks are then used as a visual guide by a paint truckoperator for depositing the desired roadway mark material along there-created roadway mark path.

Using currently accepted practices, laying out one mile of the roadwaymark path may take an hour or more and require two or more workers.Application Ser. No. 13/728,062 teaches an apparatus which significantlydecreases both the amount of time required for defining the roadway markpath and the amount of manual labor required to perform this task. As anexample, the apparatus described in application Ser. No. 13/728,062images one mile of roadway and determines the GPS location of theroadway mark path and mark characteristics at speeds far in excess ofcurrently accepted practices. Another advantage is that the hazardsassociated with manually laying out a roadway mark path are reduced bydiminishing the need to expose workers to vehicular traffic. Further,only a single worker seated and protected within the vehicle is requiredto operate the apparatus.

As an indication of the speed advantage, a vehicle having a speed of 60miles per hour requires only one minute to travel one mile. A vehicletravelling at a speed of 60 miles per hour and having a single imagercapturing images at an image acquisition rate of, for example, 100frames per second will image the roadway surface at a sampling distanceinterval of 0.88 feet. The sampling distance is chosen to insure thatthere is sufficient overlap in acquiring roadway mark segments tofaithfully capture the entire roadway mark and mark path. The GPSlocation of each roadway image and of any objects captured within theimage, for example, the roadway mark segments parts thereof, is alsodetermined.

To maintain high vehicle speeds and thus decrease the amount of timerequired to define the roadway mark path, a significant amount ofroadway image data is produced. For example, the data rate for acquiringthe roadway image data at 100 frames per second, assuming a 640 by 480pixel imager and an 8 bit intensity quantization for each pixel,requires an image data transfer rate in excess of 30 million bytes persecond and does not include other data and software overhead. This datarate doubles for vehicles equipped with two imagers.

The amount of image and other data produced is further compounded as thenumber of imaging vehicles increases. For example, it may beadvantageous to have two or more vehicles imaging all of the roadways ina large geographical area, such as an entire state, to decrease thetotal amount of time required to image and inspect all of the roadwaymarks.

Slower vehicle speeds require fewer frames per second to maintain agiven sampling distance interval and therefore produce less roadwayimage data. For example, to image every 0.88 feet at 30 miles per hourrequires 50 frames per second and approximately one half of the amountof data is generated over the 100 frames per second rate. A slowervehicle tends to obstruct the normal flow of traffic, however, and canpresent a roadway hazard to vehicular traffic, especially if the slowmoving vehicle is in the passing lane of a multi-lane highway imagingthe center roadway mark, for example. It is thus preferable that thevehicle maintain a speed consistent with the flow of highway andinterstate traffic, which can exceed 60 miles per hour. Therefore, theamount of roadway image data created and the memory required to storethese data for later image analysis from one or more imagers pervehicle, and further compounded for multiple imaging vehicles, can besignificant at highway speeds.

The amount of roadway image data created and the memory required tostore these data, however, may be minimized if the image data is firstfiltered to remove superfluous data and then compressed using losslessimage compression algorithms.

One example of image filtering is the technique known as “cropping” animage. Because the entire imaged roadway area contains a large amount ofimaged unmarked roadway surface area with respect to the imaged roadwaymark area, eliminating a substantial portion of the imaged unmarkedroadway surface area reduces the amount of image data which needs to bestored in memory. The imaged roadway area is cropped (e.g., filtered) toinclude only the imaged roadway mark, and the remaining imaged unmarkedroadway area (superfluous image data) surrounding the roadway mark imageeliminated. In other words, most of the unmarked roadway area is removedfrom the image except for a small portion surrounding the roadway mark(e.g., to provide for contrast from the roadway mark or to ensure theentire roadway mark is captured in the image).

Another example of an image filtering process which may prove useful insome applications compares the current imaged roadway area pixelintensity value to a predetermined value, commonly referred to as “imagethresholding.” If the pixel intensity value exceeds or equals thethreshold intensity value, it is assigned a value of 255 (pure white),and if the pixel intensity value is below the threshold intensity value,it is assigned a value of 0 (pure black). Restricting the pixelintensity value to only 0 (with an assigned binary digit “0”) and 255(with an assigned binary digit “1”) and eliminating the other remaining(in-between) intensity values further simplifies the image data.

Image thresholding proves an effective imaging filtering processespecially for roadway area images by using the already built-inreflection difference between the imaged roadway mark area and theimaged unmarked roadway area. For example, the imaged roadway mark rangeof pixel intensity values may be between 240-255 (i.e., the roadway markmaterial is purposely made reflective), and the imaged roadway unmarkedarea range may be between 10-100 (i.e., the roadway unmarked areasurrounding the mark is purposely made non-reflective). Thus, having apixel intensity threshold value between the lowest reflective value(240) of the roadway mark image area and the highest non-reflectivevalue (100) of the surrounding roadway unmarked area easily separatesthe imaged roadway mark area from the imaged roadway unmarked area.

The amount of roadway mark image data and the memory required to storemay be further reduced by using lossless image compression algorithms ortechniques, such as the two stage conventional portable network graphics(PNG) compression process. PNG is a conventional lossless imagecompression process which preserves the exact pixel intensity valves ofthe roadway mark image without loss of image fidelity. Also, imagethresholding along with run-length encoding (RLE) compression algorithmscan further reduce the amount of image data, although the exact pixelintensity values are now set to one of the two binary digit values (0 or1).

Thus, a two-step process of image filtering followed by image losslesscompression greatly reduces the amount of roadway image data andtherefore the amount of memory required to store these data without theloss of image fidelity.

Also, another advantage of minimizing the amount of image data withoutlosing the roadway mark image fidelity is that it now becomes feasibleto quickly and efficiently upload roadway mark image data from one ormore moving imaging vehicles to a remotely located repository andprocessing facility using conventional communication channels, such asthe internet or wireless (RF) modem technology.

The remote repository and processing facility subsequently stores allroadway mark image data from multiple vehicles and performs the requiredmachine vision image processing computations using high performancecomputing resources. Extensive memory storage on each vehicle could beminimized. Also, having a centralized processing facility eliminates theneed to have high performance computing resources in each imagingvehicle.

In addition, image data from multiple vehicles imaging opposite ends ofa long roadway (such as an interstate highway) can be easily combined byhaving all roadway image data located within a central location. Thus, acontinuous best-fit roadway mark function for the entire length of theroadway mark can be computed from data uploaded and subsequentlyprocessed and combined from multiple imaging vehicles. The centrallocation can also archive all data including roadway mark images andgenerated best-fit roadway mark paths for future access.

The roadway mark image data and the subsequent machine vision imageprocessing analyses can then be remotely accessed (i.e., downloaded) byother users and for other applications from the remote repository andprocessing facility. For example, a roadway marker striping truck canaccess and download the continuous best-fit roadway mark path functioncomputed at the remote facility from previously uploaded roadway markimage data and use this path function to re-create the original roadwaymark onto a repaved roadway. Also, other construction equipment such aspavers and snow plows can access and use the roadway mark path functionfor their respective functions.

It is therefore more efficient for all image data acquired from multiplevehicles to be uploaded to the central facility and the desired machinevision image processing analyses completed at this single facilityinstead of at the individual vehicles.

In addition, encrypting the filtered and compressed roadway image databefore the uploading process also prevents unauthorized access andprovides enhanced security during the transmission process to the remoterepository and processing facility.

According to one embodiment, the present invention provides a system fordetermining characteristics of a roadway mark at a remote locationincluding a vehicle having at least one imager for producing image datacontaining at least one actual roadway mark evident on a roadwaysurface; a GPS antenna mounted on the vehicle; a GPS receiver responsiveto the GPS antenna for determining a GPS location of the GPS antenna; anapparatus responsive to the imager and the GPS receiver for determininga GPS location of the roadway mark and filtering and compressing theimage data, the filtered and compressed image data containing the imagedata of the roadway mark; and an apparatus for communicating thefiltered and compressed image data to the remote location for analyzingthe roadway mark characteristics from the image data.

Referring with reference to the drawing and as described in detailabove, FIG. 6 illustrates the moving vehicle 1 at a first positiontravelling along the x-axis defined by Cartesian coordinate system 16and within demarcated traffic lane 11 a of the roadway 2. Referringadditionally to FIG. 7, the vehicle 1 is shown at the first positionshown in FIG. 6 and has fixed GPS antenna 510 supported above the roof19 of the vehicle 1 by support 40. Imager 50 is mounted on the left side12 of the vehicle 1 and is adjustably positioned to image area 55 of theroadway surface 17 to the left of the direction of travel of vehicle 1which includes section 30 a of center mark 30. A second side mountedimager 60 is adjustably positioned on the right side of the vehicle 1 toimage an area 65 of the roadway 17 which includes section 25 a of edgemark 25. In both FIGS. 6 and 7, the position of the vehicle 1 is suchthat the entire roadway segment 30 a is imaged by the imager 50 and theentire roadway segment 25 a is imaged by the imager 60. The imagers 50and 60 may be aligned and affixed to their respective positions on thevehicle 1 using the adjustable imager mounts as described in thisdocument.

Referring now additionally to FIG. 20, captured image 101 of the imager50 is shown having the vehicle 1 in its first position (as indicated inFIGS. 6 and 7) and includes a captured image 105 of the roadway segment30 a extending longitudinally across the entire captured imaged area101. An image Cartesian coordinate system 101 a with u-v perpendicularaxes and having its origin in the upper left hand corner is also definedfor each captured image 101. For aligned imagers 50 and 60, theirrespective image u axes will be substantially parallel to the roadwaycoordinate axis x.

The captured image 105 of the roadway segment 30 a is continuous in theu axis direction. The entire captured image 100 also includessubstantial amounts of imaged unmarked roadway surface 115 correspondingto the unmarked roadway surface contained within area 55. A similarimage is captured by imager 60 having an image of roadway mark segment25 a along with substantial amounts of imaged unmarked roadway surfacesurrounding mark segment 25 a.

FIGS. 21 and 22 illustrate the same moving vehicle 1 as shown in FIGS. 6and 7, respectively, but now at a second position longitudinallydisplaced from the first position in the positive x-direction ofcoordinate system 16. The imager 50 still images the same roadway area55 but, because the vehicle 1 has moved, a new segment 30 e of theroadway mark 30 is now imaged. The imager 60 similarly images roadwayarea 65 which now includes a new segment 25 e of the roadway mark 25.

Referring additionally to FIG. 23, the captured image 102 of the imager50 with vehicle 1 in the second position (as indicated in FIGS. 21 and22) is shown and includes an image 125 of the roadway segment 30 e. Theimaged roadway segment 125 in this case does not extend longitudinallyacross the entire image area as does image 105 of FIG. 20 (this, ofcourse, depends on the position of the vehicle 1 with respect to theimaged roadway segment 125). The captured image 102 also includessubstantial amounts of imaged unmarked roadway surface 135 correspondingto the unmarked roadway surface imaged in area 55. As for all images, animage referenced Cartesian coordinate system 102 a is defined and isshown positioned having its origin in the upper left hand corner ofimage 102.

Referring now to FIG. 24 a, image 141 shows images 146 and 151 of tworoadway segments occurring if roadway area 55 (or 65) includes therespective roadway mark elements and unmarked roadway 142. In otherwords, as captured in image 141, a gap of unmarked roadway 142 occursbetween the two roadway segments 146 and 151. A substantial amount ofunmarked roadway 142 also exists around the roadway segments 146 and151. As for all images, an image referenced Cartesian coordinate system141 a is shown.

Referring to FIG. 24 b, image 156 shows an image of unmarked roadway 152of roadway mark area 55 (or 65) without any roadway mark elements. Inother words, as captured in image 156, no roadway marks are captured.Thus, the entire image 156 is of unmarked roadway 152. As for allimages, an image referenced Cartesian coordinate system 156 a is shown.

For all of the above images having imaged roadway mark segments, largeamounts of unmarked roadway surface areas 115, 135, 142, and 152 existin the respective images of the surface areas 55 and 65 as the vehicle 1longitudinally moves along and within lane 11 a. Also, there may beareas imaged by imagers 50 and/or 60 which contain no roadway markelements (e.g., unmarked roadway 152). One reason for providing a largeamount of unmarked roadway surface area is to allow for some latitudefor the imaging. In particular, the vehicle 1 may be operated at highspeeds and the roadway marks may be positioned along curves, hills, andthe like. Thus, imaging a larger area ensures that the marks arecaptured in the images.

Referring now to FIG. 25, a schematic block diagram 500 of one preferredembodiment contained within the vehicle 1 is shown which comprises anumber of components and systems. Included are the GPS antenna 510, theGPS receiver 22, the programmable synchronization circuit 530, theimager 50, the lens 75, the aperture 76, the floodlight 51, the imager60, the lens 95, the aperture 96, the floodlight 61, the bi-directionalcommunication bus 540, the display 550, the keyboard 560, the joystick570, the computer 580, the vehicle speed detector 545, theretroreflectometers 81 and 91, the wireless transceiver (RF modem) 583,the wireless transceiver antenna 584, and the battery operated powersupply 590. The GPS receiver 22, the synchronization circuit 530, theimagers 50 and 60, the lenses 75 and 95, the apertures 76 and 96, thespeed detector 545, the floodlights 51 and 61, the retroreflectometers81 and 91, the wireless transceiver 583, and the computer 580 areelectrically interconnected, and in communication with each other, viabi-directional bus 540.

Computer 580 is a conventional computer having an image acquisitionsystem 582 for controlling and triggering the imagers 50 and 60, areal-time clock for calculating accurate time intervals (not shown), asolid state drive (SSD) 581, USB ports, internet connectivity, andwireless communication capability. Solid state drive 581 may beremovable from, and/or fixed to, computer 580.

In addition, the keyboard 560 connects to the computer 580 via dedicatedbi-directional bus 561 and provides a way for a user of the preferredembodiment to input data into computer 580. Display 550 connects to thecomputer 580 via dedicated bi-directional bus 551 and provides the userwith a visualization of mark images generated by the computer 580 andvisually displays other information to the user of the preferredembodiment. Joystick 570 connects to computer 580 via wired connection571 and is used to control a motorized imager mount.

Display 550, the keyboard 560, and the joystick 570 are conventionalcomputer peripherals. Moreover, a conventional mouse is also connectedto the computer 580 via a cable (not shown). Keyboard 560, the display550, the joystick 570, and the mouse could also communicate to thecomputer 580 via a wireless connection or a combination of cables and awireless connection, or connect directly to bus 540 for communicatingwith computer 580.

GPS antenna 510 receives GPS radio waves 505 which originate from aremote GPS satellite system and/or a GPS-pseudolite array. GPS antenna510 is conductively connected to the input of the GPS receiver 22. Radiowaves 505 could additionally include real time kinematic (RTK) serviceprovider signals (not explicitly shown).

GPS receiver 22 determines the time and the geographical location 507 ofthe antenna 510 at a periodic rate programmed by the computer 580, orthe receiver 22 can be polled by the computer 580 for positional andtime information. Positional and time information from the GPS receiver22 is placed onto bus 540.

Wireless transceiver 583 connects to the wireless antenna 584 and isable to receive incoming radio waves 585 from, and transmit outgoingradio waves 586 to, one or more remote locations, such as a remoterepository and processing facility 850 (shown in FIG. 29). The remoterepository and processing facility 850 may be a building or the like,which is located a distance away from the vehicle 1.

Referring additionally to FIG. 12, the GPS receiver 22 also outputs aperiodic pulse signal 600 onto line 594 which flows to an inputconnection of synchronization circuit 530. The time of occurrence ofperiodic pulse signal 600 is accurately known. For example, the TrimbleGPS receiver model number BD982 provides a one pulse per second (1 pps)signal 600 with a corresponding ASCII formatted Universal TimeCoordinated (UTC) time tag (i.e., the exact time of pulse occurrence).

Referring additionally to FIG. 13, synchronization circuit 530 comprisesa conventional phase lock loop circuit (having phase detector 650, lowpass filter 655, and a voltage controlled oscillator 660), and aprogrammable divider circuit 665 inserted into the phase lock loopfeedback path 667.

Programmable divider 665 is programmed to divide the period of signal600 placed onto line 594 by an integer number represented by a binarydigital signal 670 input from bus 540. Signal 670 is placed onto bus 540by computer 580. The output signal from the voltage controlledoscillator 660 is placed onto line 596 which then flows via bus 540 tothe trigger input of image acquisition system 582 contained withincomputer 580.

For example and referring now additionally to FIG. 14, an eight-bitdivider (divide by N counter) 665 programmed with binary digital signal“00000010” (which represents a divider integer value of 2) causesdivider 665 to divide the period of signal 600 by 2. This producesperiodic signal 610 which is twice the frequency of signal 600. Forexample, for a one pulse per second signal 600 and a divide by 2 integervalue programmed into divider 665 produces a periodic signal 610 havinga frequency of 2 pulses per second (period equals 0.5 seconds) whichwill be output from voltage controlled oscillator 660 and placed ontoline 596.

The phase lock loop also maintains excellent frequency tracking tostrobe pulse 600. Knowing the time of occurrence of signal 600 and thedivider integer defines the exact time when the rising edge 615 ofperiodic pulse signal 610 occurs. Thus, synchronization circuit 530 canbe programmed via computer 580 for producing periodic signals 610 havingan equal or higher frequency as, and synchronized with, signal 600.

An example of a phase lock loop is a 74HC4046 integrated circuit. Thephase lock loop function can also be implemented in software, or acombination of software and hardware.

In response to the trigger signal 610, the image acquisition system 582simultaneously triggers the imagers 50 and 60 to capture images of areas55 and 65, respectively. Captured images of areas 55 and 65 are thensubsequently stored in computer data memory 720 (see FIG. 26). Datamemory also includes solid state drive memory 581. As discussed below,along with each captured image are an image index number, time, and aninterpolated GPS geographical position of each image. It is assumed thatthe imagers 50 and 60 are triggered on the rising edge 615 of signal610, although imagers 50 and 60 could also be triggered on the fallingedge 620 of signal 610.

Triggering imagers 50 and 60 at a higher frequency than the frequency ofsignal 600 provides for one or multiple images of the roadway surfaces55 and 65 for every pulse 600. As an example, having the computer 580program divider 665 with an equivalent integer value of 2 results insynchronization circuit 530 producing a triggering signal 610 which istwice the frequency of signal 600 as shown in FIG. 14.

Speed detector 545 determines the speed of the vehicle 1 which may bedetermined by conventional mechanisms, such as an electronicspeedometer. The speed of the vehicle 1 may also be determined by thecomputer 580 from the known distance travelled using GPS coordinates andthe time it takes for the vehicle 1 to travel the known distance.

Battery operated power supply 590 provides electrical power to all blockdiagram 500 components via power bus 592 and is preferably operated froman internal battery (not shown) of the vehicle 1. Power supply 590 mayprovide both AC and DC power.

Referring to FIG. 26, the computer 580 further includes computeroperating system 700, program memory 710, and data memory 720. Computeroperating system 700 may be a conventional operating system (OS) such asWindows 7 manufactured by Microsoft, a Unix-based OS, or an AppleComputer OS system. Data memory 720 is a conventional computerread-write memory. For example, memory 720 can include separately or incombination conventional solid state drive(s) 581, high-speed hard diskdrive(s), and/or random access memory (RAM), or other computer memorytechnologies.

Program memory 710 comprises synchronization and positionalinterpolation program 730, image filtering program 735, imagecompression program 755, and image encryption program 785. Programmemory 710 also includes machine vision program 740, inspection program750, sampling program 760, curve fitting program 770, and curveoffsetting program 780.

Synchronization and positional interpolation program 730 corrects fortime latency in GPS receiver 22 (discussed below and with reference toFIG. 16) and therefore determines the accurate GPS geographical locationfor each captured image. In addition, program 730 determines the GPSderived time-tag and provides a sequential image index number andinterpolated GPS location for each captured image (for example, the GPSlocation of the image referenced coordinate system 102 a shown in FIG.23). All of these data along with the raw image data are then storedinto data memory 720.

Referring now to FIG. 16, pulse 600 along with synchronized periodicsignal pulse 610 are shown. The rising edges (first two rising edges 615a and 615 b are shown) of periodic pulse 610 (the first two pulses areindicated as 610 a and 610 b) are used to trigger image acquisitionsystem 582 thereby acquiring images of roadway areas 55 and 65 fromimagers 50 and 60, respectively. At instant time t1 receiver 22 acquiresGPS geographical positional and GPS time data. These data are availableduring time interval Δt1 after the positional and time data acquisitionis acquired at instant time t1. Instant time t1 could occur at therising edge 602 of pulse 600 and would therefore be synchronized topulse 600, or it could be delayed by time interval tx from the risingedge 602 of pulse 600. The time interval Δt1 is defined as the timelatency which occurs because the GPS receiver needs calculation time tocompute the GPS time and GPS geographical location values from satellitesignals 505, or for other reasons.

Likewise, at instant time t2 receiver 22 acquires GPS geographicalpositional and GPS time data. The time interval Δt2 is defined as thetime latency associated with instant time t2. These data are availableduring time interval Δt2 after the positional and time data are acquiredat instant time t2. Instant time t2 could occur at a preset timeinterval after t1, or instant time t2 and t1 could occur periodically.In either case, there is a possibility that image trigger signals 610 aand 610 b are not synchronized with instant time t1 or instant time t2,and therefore the exact GPS geographical position of the image is notknown within a high degree of positional accuracy.

Accurate GPS coordinates for the images of areas 55 and 65 from theimagers 50 and 60 respectively are determined at time 615 b by firstdetermining the time interval (t2−t1) and the GPS geographicalpositional difference (or equivalent positional differences in ENUcoordinates). Knowing the UTC time-tag of the rising edge 615 b of pulse610 b yields the time interval tz. Knowing tz and the time interval(t2−t1), a simple linear interpolation is used for determining thegeographical position of the images which are triggered by rising edge615 b.

The GPS location of images triggered by rising edge of 615 b equals thetime interval tz divided by the time interval (t2−t1) times thegeographical positional difference corresponding to times t2 and t1,plus the geographical position at t1. This process is repeated forsubsequent images.

Referring additionally to FIG. 27, each triggered image from the imagers50 and 60 has data block 900 which includes associated image indexnumber 901 sequentially identifying the captured images, the actualcaptured images 902 of the roadway area in conventional bit mappedformat (which may or may not include a roadway mark), GPS derivedtime-tag 903 (i.e., the time the images were acquired), and anassociated GPS geographical location 904 of the image, all of which arestored in the data memory 720 by the program 730. Data from theretroreflectometers 81 and 91 are also input by the computer 580 viadata bus 540 with each image and are appended to data block 900 (notshown). Data block 900 is then passed to image filtering program 735 asindicated by arrow 945.

Image filtering program 735 filters each image by removing those partsof the image which contain large amounts of images of the unmarkedroadway surface areas by cropping the image. Cropping maintains thedesired roadway mark segment image and a small portion of the unmarkedroadway surface surrounding the roadway mark segment image buteliminates the large amounts of the surrounding imaged unmarked roadwaysurface.

Referring to FIG. 28, a cropped image 176, depicted as a dotted linesurrounding the roadway mark image 105, is shown overlaid onto theoriginal image 101 (FIG. 20). The cropped image 176 is a rectangularshaped window area which extends across the entire image 101 andcontains the original roadway mark segment image 105 of the roadway markelement 33 a and a small portion of the image area 106 surrounding image105, but does not include those images of unmarked roadway surface 115.The small portion of the image area 106 surrounding image 105 providesenough of the unmarked roadway image so that a grayscale pixel intensityvalue comparison between the roadway mark image 105 and the surroundingroadway unmarked surface 115 can be determined. In addition, acoordinate offset is determined which defines the location of thecoordinate system 101 b (u′-v′ axes) of the cropped image 176 withrespect to the original coordinate system 101 a (u-v axes) of theoriginal image 101. This is stored as the cropped image coordinateoffset 909. The cropped image coordinate offset 909 allows repositioningof the cropped image 176 within the original image 101. For doubleroadway mark element images, the cropping rectangle would be expanded inthe v direction to include both roadway mark elements.

Cropping the roadway area image reduces the amount of memory necessaryto store image 105 of the roadway mark element 33 a over the originalunfiltered image data 902, and also minimizes the amount of roadwayimage mark data which must be analyzed increasing the speed ofsubsequent image analysis algorithms. Other image filtering algorithmsmay be further applied to the cropped roadway mark element image 176 andinclude conventional image processing segmentation algorithms such asglobal or adaptive optimal image thresholding.

This technique works well with roadway mark image 105 beingsubstantially contrasted against the surrounding roadway surface image106, thereby producing a gray-level bimodal distribution of image pixelintensity values. Pixel intensity values below the threshold value areset to 0 (black) and assigned a binary digit of “0,” and pixel intensityvalues equal to or above the threshold value are set to 255 (white) andassigned a binary digit of “1.” For example, a white roadway markelement 105 would have all of its imaged pixels set to 255 and thesurrounding macadam roadway surface 106 would have all of its imagedpixels set to 0. The threshold value is optimally chosen by conventionalmethods and could include, for example, taking the average between thelowest reflective value of the roadway mark image area and the highestnon-reflective value of the surrounding roadway unmarked area for eachimage.

For low image contrast instances between the roadway mark element 105and surrounding roadway surface 106, the floodlights 51 and 61 areturned on by computer 580 to illuminate the image roadway area abovethat provided by ambient light which further enhances the grayscalecontrast between the images 105 and 106. Externally controlling theillumination of the roadway areas 55 and 65 with the floodlights 51 and61, respectively, provides a constant illumination standard forcomparing the grayscale values of the roadway mark element image 105with respect to the surrounding roadway surface image 106.

Threshold filtering the cropped roadway image 176 loses the variation ingrayscale values for both the roadway mark element image 105 and thesurrounding roadway surface image 106, but can further reduce the amountof roadway image data.

For those images absent any roadway mark elements such as shown in FIG.24 b, a null indicator is appended to the image number 901. For example,if the image shown in FIG. 24 b has an image number “536” and has nodiscernible roadway mark element image, the image number would then bechanged to “536x” after being processed by image filtering program 735,the “x” indicating that no roadway mark element is detected in theimage. The input data block 900 is modified by image filtering program735 by having the image data 902 filtered and becoming filtered imagedata 902 a and further expanded to include coordinate offset 909 nowdefined as data block 915. The filtered image is then passed onto theimage compression program 755, as indicated by arrow 946, and may alsobe stored in data memory 720.

Image compression program 755 inputs data block 915 and compresses thefiltered image data 902 a using lossless image compression algorithms.Typical lossless compression formats include the Portable NetworkGraphics format (commonly having the file extension .png). Imagecompression techniques can also be applied to a threshold filteredimage. Lossless compression allows the exact duplication of the pixelintensity values of the original imaged roadway mark section 105 and thesurrounding imaged roadway surface area 106 without any generation loss,i.e., without the progressive degradation of image quality afterrepeated compression and decompression cycles which may be experiencedusing “lossy compression algorithms,” such as the Joint PhotographicExperts Group (JPEG) (commonly having the file extension .jpg)compression algorithm.

The image compression program 755 outputs data block 932 having imagenumber 901, image compressed (and filtered) data 902 b, coordinateoffset 909, time of image acquisition 903, and GPS image location 904.Data block 932 is passed to image encryption program 785 as indicated byarrow 947, and may be further stored in data memory 720. Imageencryption program 785 inputs data block 932 and encrypts the compressedimage data into image encrypted data 902 c. Image encryption program 785may use private-key or public-key encryption. One reason for encryptingthe image compressed data 902 b is to prevent unauthorized data accessby a third party.

Image encryption program 785 then outputs data block 934 via arrow 948to wireless transceiver 583 where data block 934 is then transmitted viathe antenna 584 to a remote location, such as a remote repository andprocessing facility 850, via radio waves 586, and data block 934 may befurther stored in the data memory 720. It is understood that the datablock 934 can be transmitted during the time of image acquisition, orcan be transmitted at a later time. Also, if encryption is not required,then the data block 932 can be sent to the wireless transceiver 583where it is then transmitted via antenna 584.

Referring now to FIG. 29, a schematic block diagram of a remoterepository and processing facility 850 of a preferred embodiment isshown which comprises a number of components and systems. The componentsand systems include wireless transceiver antenna 855, wirelesstransceiver (RF modem) 860, bi-directional communication bus 870,computer 865, display 866, and keyboard 867. The remote repository andprocessing facility 850 could be at a fixed location or could be locatedon a moving vehicle. In either case, it is assumed that electrical poweris supplied to all elements of facility 850.

Wireless transceiver 860 and computer 865 are in bi-directionalcommunication with each other via bus 870. In addition, the keyboard 867connects to computer 865 via dedicated bi-directional bus 869 andprovides a way for a user of the preferred embodiment to input data intocomputer 865. Display 866 connects to computer 865 via dedicatedbi-directional bus 868 and provides the user with a visualization ofroadway mark images generated by computer 865 (such as shown in FIG. 33b) and visually displays other data and information to the user of apreferred embodiment.

Display 866 and keyboard 867 are conventional computer peripherals. Aconventional mouse is also connected to computer 865 via a cable (notshown). Keyboard 867, display 866, and the mouse could also communicateto computer 865 via a wireless connection or a combination of cables anda wireless connection, or connect directly to bus 870 for communicatingwith computer 865.

Wireless transceiver 860 connects to wireless antenna 855 and is able toreceive incoming radio waves 586 from, and transmit outgoing radio waves585 to, one or more remote locations, including one or more systems 500(FIG. 25). Wireless transceiver 860 sends data contained in the radiowaves 586 to computer 865 via bus 870. It is anticipated that wirelesstransceiver 860 will receive incoming radio waves 586 from more than onevehicle 1 and will be able to simultaneously process these incomingradio waves 586 using conventional communication techniques. Facility850 has the ability to service any number of imaging vehicles 1receiving and sending data via antenna 855 using conventionalcommunication techniques.

Referring now to FIG. 30, the computer 865 further includes a computeroperating system 1000, a program memory 1010, and a data memory 1020.Computer operating system 1000 may be a conventional operating system(OS), such as Windows 7 manufactured by Microsoft, a Unix-based OS, oran Apple Computer OS system. Data memory 1020 is a conventional computerread-write memory. For example, data memory 1020 could includeseparately or in combination conventional solid state drive(s),high-speed hard disk drive(s), and/or random access memory (RAM) orother computer memory technologies. Program memory 1010 comprises imagedecryption program 1030, image inverse compression program 1035, imageinverse filter program 1040, machine vision program 1045, imagestitching program 1050, inspection program 1055, sampling program 1060,curve fitting program 1065, and curve offsetting program 1070.

Referring additionally to FIG. 31, wireless transceiver 860 passes datablock 1100 contained within radio waves 586 (which is either data block932 unencrypted data or encrypted data block 934) to computer 865 viabus 870 and noted as arrow 1110. Data block 1100 (for encrypted datablock 934) includes image number 901, encrypted image data 902 c,coordinate offset 909, time 903 at which the image was captured, and thecorresponding GPS image location 904 at the time the image was captured,and any retroreflection data.

Data block 1100 is then input to image decryption program 1030 whichdecrypts the encrypted image data 902 c into image decrypted data 902 breversing the encryption of image encryption program 785. Imagedecryption program 1030 forms data block 1200 which now includes theimage number 901, decrypted (but still compressed and filtered) imagedata 902 b, coordinate offset 909, time 903, and GPS image location 904.Data block 1200 is then passed to image inverse compression program 1035noted by arrow 1120.

Image inverse compression program 1035 inputs data block 1200 andreverses the image compression which was previously applied by program755, i.e., restores the previously compressed cropped image 902 a andforms data block 1300. The uncompressed cropped image 902 a is theactual cropped image with or without the cropped image having imagethresholding applied.

Data block 1300 now includes image number 901, uncompressed (but stillcropped) image data 902 a, coordinate offset 909, time 903, and GPSimage location 904. Data block 1300 is then passed onto image inversefiltering program 1040 noted by arrow 1130. Data block 1300 is alsopassed onto machine vision program 1045 (see FIG. 32).

Machine vision program 1045 therefore processes the cropped image and,hence, interacts with a much reduced amount of image data to performimage process calculations such as edge finding, geometric calculations,and other calculations. This diminishes the amount of computational timerequired. Image inverse filtering program 1040 uses the coordinateoffset data 909 to position the cropped image within the entire view ofthe image of the roadway surface area, although the actual grayscalevalues of the previously cropped image of the surrounding roadwaysurface will not be exactly duplicated.

Data block 1350 includes image number 901, image data 902 (although thegrayscale values of the surrounding previously cropped roadway surfacearea are not exactly duplicated), time 903, and GPS image location 904.Data block 1350 is then stored in data memory 1020 noted by arrow 1140.

Referring now to FIG. 32, the machine vision program 1045 includes anumber of machine vision algorithms which are selected by the userdefined calculations input 1400 to perform desired calculations on imagedata 902 a. These calculations may include, for example, edge detection,geometric computations, distance computations of imaged objects, andother generic machine vision calculations. The user selects the definedcalculations by using the keyboard 867.

For example, the machine vision program 1045 includes algorithms whichthe user selects by user defined calculations input 1400 to determinethe GPS location of the roadway mark edges within the field of thefiltered (cropped) image, the actual width and length dimensions of theroadway mark elements, the GPS location of the cropped roadway imagereferenced coordinate system (for example, coordinate system 101 b inFIG. 28) from the GPS roadway mark image location 904 and coordinateoffset 909, and other roadway mark characteristics such as the area ofthe roadway mark.

Moreover, the machine vision program 1045 also includes algorithms whichthe user may select applying user-defined user calculations input 1400to determine, using the grayscale values of the filtered (cropped)roadway mark element images and the surrounding roadway unmarked image(for example, roadway mark element image 105 and area 106 shown in FIG.28), the reflectivity of the roadway mark, the reflectivity of thesurrounding roadway surface, and the relative difference between thereflectivity of the roadway mark and the reflectivity of the surroundingroadway surface. For example, an image of section 30 a of roadway mark30 may have a value of 220 (very “white”) based upon a grayscale valueof 0 to 255 (assuming an 8 bit intensity quantization), while thesurrounding roadway surface (such as asphalt-macadam) may have a valueof 20 (very “black”), yielding a grayscale contrast difference of 200between roadway mark section 30 a and the surrounding roadway surface.Using the threshold filtered image does not produce grayscale variations(pixel intensity values are either 0 or 255) and would not produce thedesired results for this reflectivity calculation.

Machine vision program 1045 further includes algorithms which may alsobe selected by user-defined calculations input 1400 to determine thearea “fill percentage” using the grayscale values of the roadway mark.Machine vision program 1045 still further includes algorithms which mayalso be selected by user-defined calculations input 1400 to compute thelateral distances (i.e., in the y direction of coordinate system 16)between roadway marks and can determine, for example, the width of lane11 a and/or the lateral spacing between double roadway marks. Machinevision program 1045 may also be programmed by user input 1400 to inputretroreflection data from the retroreflectometers 81 and 91 which werepreviously appended to data block 1300.

Machine vision program 1045 subsequently expands the original data block1300 to now include the desired user-defined calculations 1400 inaddition to the original data contained within block 1300. For example,data block 1300 is expanded to include the roadway mark dimensions 905(for example, roadway mark width and length), the area fill percentage906, and the grayscale reflectivity values 907, all of which are nowgrouped within data block 1310 and subsequently stored in data memory1020. If retroreflection data are required, data block 1310 is furtherexpanded to include retroreflection data. Other data may be included indata block 1310, such as lane width, etc.

Data block 1310 is then passed to inspection program 1055 as indicatedby arrow 1150, and also passed to image stitching program 1050.Inspection program 1055 inputs both data block 1310 and user-definedroadway mark standards data 1410, and further performs a comparisonbetween the data stored in data block 1310 and the roadway markstandards data 1410. Any roadway mark which does not meet the definedroadway mark standards data 1410 is flagged with a code and stored inerror flags section 908 of data block 1320.

For example, data block 1320 is shown as the output of inspectionprogram 1055 having the image index number 901 a as number “33.”Appended to data block 1320 is error flags section 908. Stored withinsection 908 is the error flag 06 which indicates that the roadway markderived from image “33” did not meet, for example, the roadway markwidth standard. All data which fail the comparison between the datastored in data block 1310 and the roadway mark standards data 1410 arestored in data memory 1020 as indicated by arrow 1160 for later analysisand/or remedial work. Data blocks 1310 and 1320 can also be downloadedto other remote locations or vehicles, such as striping trucks, pavers,or other construction vehicles via wireless transceiver 860 and radiowaves 585.

Referring now to FIG. 33 a, a progressive time sequence of croppedroadway mark images is shown for roadway marks 1670, 1700, and 1800.Specifically, at time t1 the rectangular cropping window image 1600 isshown which includes roadway mark element image 1610. The GPScoordinates of the roadway mark element 1610 endpoints 1620 and 1630have been previously determined by the machine vision program 1045.

At time t2, the cropping window has now moved (vehicle 1 has moved) andincludes roadway mark element 1660. The GPS coordinates of the roadwaymark element 1660 endpoints 1640 and 1650 have also been determined bymachine vision program 1045. Thus, the beginning and ending location andthe width of the roadway mark 1670 are now determined. This processcontinues for the entire roadway mark path. For example, at time t3machine vision program 1045 again determines the locations of endpoints1640 and 1650, and at time t4 the endpoints 1680 and 1690 of the newroadway mark 1700 are determined. This process would be repeated for thenext roadway mark 1800.

Referring to FIG. 33 b, conventional image stitching program 1050 usesthe GPS location of roadway mark element endpoints and forms acontinuous replication of the complete imaged roadway mark maintainingthe correct distance between roadway marks and the dimensions of theroadway marks. Curve fitting program 1065 inputs discrete GPS coordinatedata previously stored in data memory 1020 and determines a firstcontinuous mathematical function which best-fits the discrete GPScoordinate data. For example, curve 1750 represents the continuousfunction determined by the curve fitting program 1065 for the roadwaymarks 1670, 1700, and 1800. The curve 1750 defines the complete roadwaymark path.

The curve offsetting program 1070 inputs the continuous functiondetermined by the curve fitting program 1065 and generates a secondcontinuous function similar and parallel to the first function butoffset from the first function by a given distance. The user inputs thisdistance into program 1070 via keyboard 560. For example, the firstfunction may represent the roadway mark 30 on roadway 2. A secondfunction defining a roadway edge mark line 25 may be derived from thefirst function by offsetting the first function by a distance, or thefirst function may represent a roadway edge mark 20 and the roadway mark30 may be derived from the first function by offsetting the firstfunction by a distance.

In operation, the operator of vehicle 1 begins to travel on roadway 2maintaining vehicle 1 within lane 11 a defined by roadway demarcationmarks, for example, center mark 30 and roadway side mark 25. It isassumed at this point that power supply 590 is turned on and supplyingpower via bus 592 to the respective components of the system. With powerapplied via bus 592, all components begin operating. In response tosupplied power, GPS receiver 22 begins to input GPS signals 505 from GPSantenna 510 and starts to calculate GPS geographical position 507 andtime-tag information. GPS receiver 22 also generates periodic signal 600which flows onto line 594 to synchronization circuit 530.

At a chosen position for beginning to inspect the left and/or right sideroadway marks and/or determine the geographical location of thepre-existing roadway marks, the user depresses a “Start” key on keyboard560 which communicates this key selection to computer 580 via connection561. Computer 580 then inputs speed data of the vehicle 1 from speeddetector 545 (or alternately uses the differences in vehicle GPSposition and time data from the receiver 22 to compute vehicle speed).

In response to the speed of the vehicle 1, the computer 580 programsprogrammable divider 665 of synchronization circuit 530 via signals 670placed onto bus 540. In response to a programmed divider 665,synchronization circuit 530 outputs signal 610 onto line 596 which flowsvia bus 540 to image acquisition system 582 contained within computer580. In response to signal 610, image acquisition system 582 triggersthe imagers 50 and 60 to capture the roadway mark areas 55 and 65,respectively. Programming divider 665 in response to the speed of thevehicle 1 insures that the frequency of the trigger signal 610 issufficient for triggering the imagers 50 and 60 at a rate to acquireoverlapping images so that a continuous and complete image of theroadway mark path is imaged so that there are no missing sections of theroadway mark.

By having the frequency of image triggering signal 610 programmable anddependent upon the speed of vehicle 1 insures that efficient use of datamemory 720 occurs when storing image data. For example, the vehicle 1may be stopped at a traffic light or experience significant variationsin vehicle speed as might occur in stop-and-go traffic. Adjusting thefrequency of image triggering signal 610 as a function of the speed ofthe vehicle 1 insures that at lower vehicle speeds fewer roadway imagesare taken while at higher vehicle speeds many more roadway images aretaken while still maintaining sufficient image overlap so that there areno missing sections of the roadway mark and the complete and entireroadway mark (and mark path) has been imaged.

Synchronization and positional interpolation program 730 corrects thepositional data of each roadway image for GPS receiver 22 latency toinsure the accurate geographical position for each roadway image,sequentially numbers each captured image with an image index number 901,and then stores the index number 901, captured image data 902, time ofimage acquisition 903, and the GPS location of the roadway image 904(for example, the GPS location of the origin of coordinate system 101 ain FIG. 28) as a data block 900 into data memory 720. Image filteringprogram 735 then crops the image data 902 forming filtered image data902 a (for example, cropped image 176 in FIG. 28). Program 735calculates a coordinate offset 909 and forms data block 915.

In addition or in the alternative, the cropped image 902 a can befurther filtered using image thresholding. If image thresholding isdesired, computer 580 turns on the floodlights 51 and 61 illuminatingthe roadway areas 55 and 65 respectively with a constant and uniformlight and, based upon the grayscale values of the imaged roadway markelement and the surrounding strip of imaged roadway surface (for exampleroadway mark element image 105 and surrounding roadway area 106 in FIG.28), determines an optimal threshold value if desired, and furtherprocesses the cropped image. In either case data block 915 is thenpassed onto image compression program 755.

Image compression program then compresses the filtered image data andforms compressed image data 902 b. Data block 932 can be stored intodata memory 720 and/or sent to wireless transceiver 583 if encryption isnot desired and is further passed to image encryption program 785. Imageencryption program 785 encrypts the compressed image data 902 b andforms encrypted image data 902 c. At this point, data block 934 can besaved to memory 720 and/or sent to wireless transceiver 583. Uponreceiving data block 934, wireless transceiver 583 transmits data block934 via antenna 584 as radio waves 586 to remote repository andprocessing facility 850.

Antenna 855 of repository and processing facility 850 thereby receivesradio waves 586 and conductively passes this radio frequency signal towireless transceiver 860. Wireless transceiver 860 then demodulates theradio wave signal 586 and passes data block 934 as data block 1100 tothe computer 865 via bus 870 noted by arrow 1110. Upon receiving datablock 1100, the image decryption program 1030 decrypts the encryptedimage data 902 c and forms data block 1200. If data block 932 isreceived, image decryption program is bypassed and data block 932 passeddirectly to image inverse compression program 1035. Data block 1200 isthen passed to image inverse compression program 1035.

Image inverse compression program 1035 inputs data block 1200 anddecompresses image data 902 b into image 902 a and forms data block1300. Image 902 a is either the actual cropped image (including forexample roadway mark image 105 and the surrounding imaged unmarkedroadway area 106 in FIG. 28) or the threshold filtered cropped image.Data block 1300 is then passed to image inverse filtering program 1040.

Inverse filtering program 1040 then uses coordinate offset 909 andlocation 904 to form image 902 of the entire image of the roadway area55 and/or 65 including the original roadway mark 105 and the originalarea 106 with the other surrounding roadway image area 115 set to agrayscale value of 0 (see FIG. 28) (or modified to account for completethresholding if applicable, i.e., the roadway element image will have agrayscale value of 255 and the image of the surrounding roadway imagewill have a grayscale value of 0) and forms data block 1350 which issubsequently stored into data memory 1020. Data block 1350 can then beaccessed remotely through wireless transceiver 860 via radio waves 585.

Data block 1300 is further passed to the machine vision program 1045.The machine vision program 1045 then inputs the images stored in datablock 1300 format indicted by arrow 1130, performs geometriccalculations, and determines the width and length of the roadway mark,grayscale reflectivity, fill percentages, and other roadway markcharacteristics as defined by user-defined calculations input 1400.

The original data stored in data block 1300 for each image is nowexpanded to include mark dimensions 905, area fill percentage 906, andgrayscale reflectivity 907 and any other user-defined calculations 1400forming data block 1310 as shown in FIG. 32. The machine vision program1045 also determines beginning 1620 and 1630 coordinates and ending 1640and 1650 coordinates for each roadway mark 1670, and can also from theseand subsequent coordinates determine the relative spacing between theactual roadway marks. For example, the coordinates 1640 and 1650 and thecoordinates 1680 and 1690 define the corner coordinates for therectangular-shaped unmarked space between the roadway marks 1670 and1700.

Inspection program 1055 inputs the data block 1310 as indicated by arrow1150 in FIG. 32 and also inputs user-defined roadway mark standards1410. Inspection program 1055 then compares the data contained withinthe data block 1310 with the corresponding data contained within roadwaymark standards 1410. Any roadway mark not meeting the desired standardsis flagged and saved to the memory 1020 as indicated by the arrow 1160as the data block 1320.

Data block 1310 is also passed to the image stitching program 1050.Image stitching program 1050 uses beginning and ending coordinates ofeach roadway mark (for example, beginning coordinates 1620 and 1630 andending coordinates 1640 and 1650 for roadway mark 1670) to stitchtogether an entire contiguous roadway mark along the roadway mark pathas defined by the curve fitting program 1065. Curve fitting program 1065inputs the sampled GPS coordinate data previously stored in the datamemory 1020 and determines a first continuous mathematical functionwhich best-fits the discrete GPS coordinate data to define the roadwaymark path.

Curve offsetting program 1070 inputs the continuous function determinedby the curve fitting program 1065 and generates a second continuousfunction similar and parallel to the first function but offset from thefirst function by a given distance. For example, the first function mayrepresent the roadway mark 30 on roadway 2. A second function defining aroadway edge mark line 25 may be derived from the first function byoffsetting the first function by a distance, or the first function mayrepresent a roadway edge mark 20 and the roadway mark 30 may be derivedfrom the first function by offsetting the first function by a distance.

The continuous function(s) determined by curve fitting program 1065and/or curve offsetting program 1070, along with roadway markcharacteristics, are then used by a GPS roadway marker to replicate theoriginal roadway mark onto a repaved roadway. In addition, remote usersmay access data contained within any of the blocks 1300, 1310, 1320 andthe outputs from curve fitting program 1065 and curve offsetting program1070. Thus, the geographical position of roadway marks which do not meetthe desired roadway mark standards can be identified and the GPSgeographical position known and later used for remedial work by a workcrew. The roadway mark GPS geographical position can also be used toremark a repaved roadway.

Although illustrated and described above with reference to certainspecific embodiments, the present invention is nevertheless not intendedto be limited to the details shown. Rather, various modifications may bemade in the details within the scope and range of equivalents of theclaims and without departing from the spirit of the invention. It isexpressly intended, for example, that all ranges broadly recited in thisdocument include within their scope all narrower ranges which fallwithin the broader ranges.

What is claimed:
 1. A system for determining characteristics of aroadway mark or portion thereof at a remote location, comprising: avehicle having at least one GPS-calibrated, downwardly directed imagerfor automatically producing roadway image data containing at least oneactual roadway mark or portion thereof evident on a roadway surface; aGPS antenna mounted on the vehicle; a GPS receiver responsive to the GPSantenna for determining a GPS location of the GPS antenna; an apparatusresponsive to the imager and the GPS receiver for filtering the roadwayimage data and producing GPS-referenced filtered image data; and anapparatus responsive to the GPS-referenced filtered image data forcompressing the GPS-referenced filtered image data; and an apparatus forcommunicating the GPS-referenced filtered and compressed image data tothe remote location for analyzing the roadway mark or portion thereofcharacteristics from the GPS-referenced filtered and compressed imagedata.
 2. The system according to claim 1, wherein the filtered andcompressed image data comprises cropped versions of the roadway imagedata.
 3. The system according to claim 1, wherein the roadway image datacomprises a plurality of images of the roadway surface including atleast a portion of the roadway mark and unmarked roadway surface, andthe images are cropped to include at least a portion of the roadway markand a portion of the unmarked roadway surface surrounding the roadwaymark.
 4. The system according to claim 1, wherein the roadway image datacomprises at least one pixel intensity value, and the filtered andcompressed image data comprises the pixel intensity value as compared toa predetermined value.
 5. The system according to claim 1 furthercomprising a wireless transceiver and a wireless antenna adapted toreceive incoming radio waves from, and transmit outgoing radio waves to,the remote location.
 6. The system according to claim 1, wherein theremote location is a remote repository and processing facilitycomprising a wireless transceiver antenna, a wireless transceiver, abi-directional communication bus, a computer, and a display.
 7. Thesystem according to claim 6, wherein the remote repository andprocessing facility comprises an inverse compression program and aninverse filtering program.
 8. The system according to claim 1, whereinthe GPS antenna, adapted to receive GPS radio wave signals originatingfrom a GPS satellite system or a GPS-pseudolite array, is connected tothe GPS receiver which decodes the GPS signals for determining the GPSlocation of the GPS antenna.
 9. The system according to claim 1 furthercomprising a speed detector.
 10. The system according to claim 1 furthercomprising a vehicle navigation and control system controlling thedirection, speed, and acceleration of the vehicle along a predeterminedpath.
 11. A system for determining characteristics of a roadway mark ata remote location, comprising: a vehicle having at least one imager forproducing image data containing at least one actual roadway mark evidenton a roadway surface, wherein the at least one imager comprises a firstimager and a second imager, the first imager mounted on the vehicle andaligned to image the at least one roadway mark substantially parallelto, and to the left of, a direction of travel of the vehicle, and thesecond imager mounted on the vehicle and aligned to image the at leastone roadway mark substantially parallel to, and to the right of, thedirection of travel of the vehicle; a GPS antenna mounted on thevehicle; a GPS receiver responsive to the GPS antenna for determining aGPS location of the GPS antenna; an apparatus responsive to the imagerand the GPS receiver for determining a UPS location of the roadway markand filtering and compressing the image data, the filtered andcompressed image data containing the image data of the roadway mark; andan apparatus for communicating the filtered and compressed image data tothe remote location for analyzing the roadway mark characteristics fromthe image data.
 12. A system for determining characteristics of aroadway mark at a remote location, comprising: a vehicle having at leastone imager for producing image data containing at least one actualroadway mark evident on a roadway surface; a mount for affixing the atleast one imager to the vehicle comprising: (a) an adjustable mount forpositioning the at least one imager to image at least one roadway markand including at least one fixably adjustable axis of rotationsubstantially parallel to the roadway surface, and (b) at least onemagnetic clamp affixed to the adjustable mount for removably affixingthe adjustable mount to the vehicle; a GPS antenna mounted on thevehicle; a GPS receiver responsive to the UPS antenna for determining aGPS location of the GPS antenna; an apparatus responsive to the imagerand the UPS receiver for determining a GPS location of the roadway markand filtering and compressing the image data, the filtered andcompressed image data containing the image data of the roadway mark; andan apparatus for communicating the filtered and compressed image data tothe remote location for analyzing the roadway mark characteristics fromthe image data.
 13. A method for determining characteristics of aroadway mark or portion thereof at a remote location, comprising:producing roadway image data containing an actual roadway mark orportion thereof evident on a roadway surface automatically from aGPS-calibrated, downwardly directed imager mounted on a moving vehicle;producing GPS-referenced filtered image data; compressing theGPS-referenced filtered image data; and communicating the GPS-referencedfiltered and compressed image data to the remote location for analyzingthe characteristics of the roadway mark or portion thereof from theGPS-referenced filtered and compressed image data.
 14. The method ofclaim 13, wherein the producing step comprises cropping images of theimage data.
 15. The method of claim 13, wherein the producing stepcomprises image thresholding.
 16. The method according to claim 13,wherein the compressing step comprises applying lossless imagecompression algorithms.
 17. The method according to claim 13, whereinthe compressing step comprises portable network graphics compression.18. The method according to claim 13 further comprising, at the remotelocation, reversing the filtered and compressed image data.
 19. Themethod according to claim 13 further comprising encrypting the filteredand compressed image data to form encrypted image data.
 20. The methodaccording to claim 19 further comprising, at the remote location,decrypting the encrypted image data, reversing the filtered andcompressed image data to restore the filtered image, and reversing thefiltered image data.
 21. A system for determining characteristics of aroadway mark or portion thereof at a remote location, comprising: avehicle having at least one GPS-calibrated, downwardly directed imagerfor automatically producing, either directly or indirectly,GPS-referenced image data containing at least one actual roadway mark orportion thereof evident on a roadway surface; a GPS antenna mounted onthe vehicle; a GPS receiver responsive to the GPS antenna fordetermining a GPS location of the GPS antenna; an apparatus responsiveto the imager and the GPS receiver for producing GPS-referenced filteredand compressed image data, the GPS-referenced filtered and compressedimage data containing the image data of the roadway mark or portionthereof; and an apparatus for communicating the GPS-referenced filteredand compressed image data to the remote location for analyzing theroadway mark or portion thereof characteristics from the GPS-referencedfiltered and compressed image data.
 22. A system for determiningcharacteristics of a roadway mark or portion thereof at a remotelocation, comprising: a vehicle having at least one downwardly directedimager for automatically producing image data containing at least oneactual roadway mark or portion thereof evident on a roadway; a GPSantenna mounted on the vehicle; a GPS receiver responsive to the GPSantenna for determining a GPS location of the GPS antenna; an apparatusresponsive to the GPS receiver and imager for (a) producingGPS-referenced image data of the at least one roadway mark or portionthereof, and (b) filtering and compressing the GPS-referenced image dataof the at least one roadway mark or portion thereof; and an apparatusfor communicating the filtered and compressed GPS-referenced image datato the remote location for analyzing the roadway mark or portion thereofcharacteristics from the GPS-referenced filtered and compressed imagedata.
 23. The method according to claim 13, wherein the compressing stepcomprises lossy image compression algorithms.
 24. The system accordingto claim 1, wherein the roadway mark or portion thereof characteristicscomprise the length of the roadway mark or portion thereof.
 25. Thesystem according to claim 1, wherein the roadway mark or portion thereofcharacteristics comprise the width of the roadway mark or portionthereof.
 26. The system according to claim 1, wherein the roadway markor portion thereof characteristics comprise the area fill percentage ofthe roadway mark or portion thereof.
 27. The system according to claim1, wherein the roadway mark or portion thereof characteristics comprisethe grayscale reflectivity of the roadway mark or portion thereof.
 28. Asystem for determining characteristics of a roadway mark or portionthereof at a remote location, comprising: a vehicle having at least oneimager for producing image data containing at least one actual roadwaymark or portion thereof evident on a roadway surface; an adjustablemount for affixing the at least one imager to the vehicle and forpositioning the at least one imager to image the at least one roadwaymark or portion thereof, the mount including at least one fixablyadjustable axis of rotation substantially parallel to the roadwaysurface; a GPS antenna mounted on the vehicle; a GPS receiver responsiveto the GPS antenna for determining a GPS location of the GPS antenna; anapparatus responsive to the imager and the GPS receiver for (a)producing GPS-referenced image data of the at least one roadway mark orportion thereof, and (b) filtering and compressing the UPS-referencedimage data of the at least one roadway mark or portion thereof; and anapparatus for communicating the GPS-referenced filtered and compressedimage data to the remote location for analyzing the roadway mark orportion thereof characteristics from the GPS-referenced filtered andcompressed image data.
 29. The system according to claim 1, wherein thecharacteristics of the roadway mark or portion thereof comprise the GPSlocation of the roadway mark or portion thereof.
 30. The methodaccording to claim 13, wherein the characteristics of the roadway markor portion thereof comprise the GPS location of the roadway mark orportion thereof.
 31. The system according to claim 22, wherein thecharacteristics of the roadway mark or portion thereof comprise the GPSlocation of the roadway mark or portion thereof.
 32. The systemaccording to claim 28, wherein the characteristics of the roadway markor portion thereof comprise the GPS location of the roadway mark orportion thereof.